The Last One
by Hedwig Edwiges
Summary: ABANDONED. I don't have a good reason to continue to try writing it. After the Horcruxes' hunting, the moment for the last encounter between Harry and Voldemort had arrived. "Neither can live while the other survives". Comply with canon up to HBP.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: As in a lot of fanfics I enjoyed reading, this states that all belongs to J.K.Rowling, and I just was lucky enough to borrow and play with it a little. I'm pretty sure I picked some influences and ideas around the corner. It wasn't my intention to copy anyone or anything and I apologize if this – inadvertently – happened.

Summary: After the Horcrux hunt, the moment for the last encounter between Harry and Voldemort had arrived. "Neither can live while the other survives." Comply with canon up to HBP.

Author's Notes: I have written another "last battle" fanfic and it was an open-ending story. This one will be more of a tale. English is not my first language, so be patient with my mistakes and review or email me to draw attention to them. I'll correct everything I can.

Thanks to "buttamellow" from WizardTales (dot) net, "TheGreyLady" from perfectimagination(dot)co(dot)uk for the beta of this chapter.

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**CHAPTER ONE **

After almost a year of hunting, they had destroyed three of the accessible Horcruxes, but there was still one: Nagini. Voldemort had the last part of his soul inside his recreated body.

They went back to Hogwarts for some rest and regrouping; at least, that was the plan of which Ron and Hermione were aware. They thought that rejoining the Order of Phoenix and fighting together in a battle against Voldemort and his Death Eaters would decide this second war.

But he knew better. Voldemort was not one to face the enemy up front. Using a Slytherin approach, he preferred stealth, secrecy, and a bit of backstabbing, a fact that was obvious after the attack on Hogwarts, when Dumbledore died, and all of the disappearances around England. People had vanished during the night and nobody knew how or to where.

No. Voldemort would not gather an army and march against Hogwarts' gates. He would instead contact all the spies he could find and infiltrate the places he wanted. Or he would commission some kidnappings or attacks in the middle of the night.

So, Harry would let Ron and Hermione believe in their fairytale of great deeds, brave warriors, and a battle to end the war. He knew better, and he needed to plan their last encounter.

The last battle, the end of this war, would be much like their other encounters. It would be in a place few knew, a place that would take some time to get to. Voldemort would use his followers to weaken his enemy. He would strike the final blow. Voldemort was never a man to go against too many odds; all of his meetings with Harry only sharpened this trend. Voldemort would do whatever he could to be sure that Harry wasn't in any condition to fight back.

All of this reasoning brought him back to the necessity to plan a very good strategy. There would be no second chances. But he did have some time to rest first. He at least needed a rested body to sustain him. He knew that resting his mind would be much more difficult.

So, Harry jumped on his old bed inside the now seventh-year dormitory, closed the curtains around it and relaxed his body, letting his mind wander.

_'This time, it will be my way, by my choosing. I have played his way for too long. It's my time to lead this dance,_' Harry thought, torn between relief that the end was near and trepidation about what this would really mean, especially for him.

He knew he was older than his years, his childhood lost in a loveless house, his teenager years torn between impossible responsibilities he never offered to bear or wanted to shoulder. But, maybe the last year was the worst of all. There had been more pain and despair than he ever imagined possible. Even with the help of his best friends, the hunting, and some visions, he couldn't escape Voldemort all the time: awake or asleep. But now all would end. This would be the last time.

The last confrontation. The last battle. The last chance.

He couldn't go on like this anymore. He needed closure. Peace. So he would stage the scenery for the last act. He would be alone, as it should be in the end. After all, 'either must die at the hand of the other, for neither can live while the other survives.' He was able to reach this moment thanks to his friends: loyal, courageous friends who had risked everything to help him. Friends who still thought that they would be with him at the end. However, Harry knew this wouldn't be possible. This wasn't what was foreseen. Let them rest and be with their loved ones. Harry was the "Chosen One," "The Only One Who Could Destroy Him." He was the ultimate weapon.

_'I'm certainly not the smartest. Maybe not the strongest or the most powerful. But, certainly, I'm the most driven,' _Harry thought, having finally given up in any effort to clear his mind. He needed this last "discussion" with himself. He needed to review his life and his motives against Voldemort. He needed the nourishment that this knowledge would get him.

He went inside his mind, opening the doors to where his memories were stored. All the effort to learn Occlumency so he could avoid Voldemort's mind attacks had helped, though not completely. Their minds were too interwoven after so many years for it to be possible to end all connections, but at least the communication now was completely unintentional. Harry had the chance to peek into some of Voldemort's plans as well as the misfortune to witness some of his deeds. It was the price he had to pay in the war.

While the Light side had lost only a handful of important allies, it had also lost far too many innocents and bystanders. The Dark side, however, had lost a lot of followers and found difficulty in gather many eager new ones.

As they were traveling back to Hogwarts after the destruction of the last Horcrux, Harry had reached and accepted the conclusion that balance was needed in the world. There would always be light against dark, good against evil, two sides to every coin, and a grey area in between.

It had taken more time for him to accept his place in this chessboard. He had never asked to be the knight chosen to corner the enemy king. He had begun this game without knowing his place in it and he hated the choices that others had made in his name. But regrets and past deeds were not the issue anymore. They could not be. There was no way to change the past. Not even Hermione could find a spell that would allow him to travel back enough years in time to change something relevant. A few hours would never be enough.

Not for the first time, Harry thought about how the world would have turned up had he had died that fateful Halloween night. He and Voldemort together, disappearing off this earth. Maybe someone worse would have risen. Or perhaps the Wizarding world would have had very happy years of prosperity.

This kind of game, this "what if," was one of the worst tortures Harry could do to himself. Hermione, and even Ron, had warned him against it. But it was a bit like a scab over a recent wound. One could not resist the urge to scratch it, for if it broke and started to bleed again, there was no problem. Another scab would form. Of course, the place would be a bit more sensitive, and it would leave a scar in the end, but that's the way of things. And Harry was used to scars.

But he didn't have the time for this game anymore. It was time to focus and plan, and this time he couldn't ask for Ron's chess mastery or Hermione's research skills. Like always, he was alone against Voldemort and would need his wits about him. At least now he was forewarned.

Finally letting the weariness get to him, Harry turned to his side and gave in to sleep.

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It was lunchtime and all of the warriors of the Light were together in the Great Hall. One big table full of food was the central point of the room, and people were eating and talking with an amazing degree of freedom and happiness, if one considered the dark times. The summer holidays gave them the space and place to congregate. Headmistress McGonagall was confident that the next year would be better for all. She needed to believe this or she wouldn't be able to go on.

Harry sat flanked by Ron and Tonks on the either side. Hermione was by Ron's other side. The other Weasleys were gathered close by, Percy the only one still missing. Although he had never really made up with his family, he was once again on speaking terms, as the Order and the Ministry were allies now.

New people entered the Order while a few people disappeared. Snape was not present and his status was still in discussion. Dumbledore's portrait, after waking, informed them that the spy's act had been something that was agreed upon between the two men. Snape still provided the Order with some helpful information, but he had cultivated too many enemies in his Hogwarts' years to be so easily forgiven and forgotten.

Harry, for one, would never forgive his ex-Potions professor. Not for Dumbledore's murder or for the years of persecution and torment. Not for all the hateful remarks against his father and godfather. And especially not for Snape's part in his first Occlumency classes and Sirius's death.

If Harry was to survive the final encounter with Voldemort, and Snape and all his enemies, it would be better if the two never met again. Harry would exact revenge on the man as he had on the traitor Wormtail.

Harry, Ron and Hermione had met the rat-man at the site of the last Horcrux. Voldemort was suspicious of the Gryffindor Trio's activities and had sent the little coward to investigate. Harry had breathed in relief when Wormtail had exploded in flames together with the Horcrux.

Looking around, Harry drank in the moment as he collected and stored images and memories of his loved ones. The people who helped him to learn about love and trust and friendship. Of course, it hadn't been a smooth journey all the way. There had been fights and disagreements, but there was forgiveness and closeness.

When Harry had awakened this morning, he finally knew why he was fighting. He knew that he wanted a chance for a real life without the sword of death and darkness over his head. Most of all, he knew that he was fighting for those people who had shown him this possibility, for those people who had shown him that he did have a chance to live.

So Harry ate and listened and looked around. People were happy to be together again. There was a lot of gossip and news to share, good memories to discuss, as well as few new pranks from the twins to laugh about.

Finally, something Kingsley was saying caught Harry's attention.

"We have raided Malfoy Manor enough times. It's an abandoned house by now. But that little ferret, Draco, has been moving around so much that I think he's up to no good. The Malfoy family has enough hiding places to offer some kind of harbour to Death Eaters and You-Know-Who himself."

The people around the Auror nodded in agreement.

Harry felt like snorting_. 'For Merlin's sake!' he thought. 'They are still using this stupid "You-Know-Who" and "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named" around. When people will grow up? How do they expect to fight and defeat him if they can't even say his name?' _

But Harry's thoughts were cut short when he remembered that he, Harry, would be the one to fight Voldemort directly. There was no use in complaining about the name thing. Harry could only hope that, after all this ended, everyone would learn to say the Dark Lord's name and prevent another one from rising too soon. This thought dragged him down, his good mood slipping away.

"Remember, Harry, in second year, when we found out about the secret room where Malfoy stashed his dark objects?" Ron asked, rescuing Harry from his thoughts. "Dad had a nice raid there then."

"It was only a room?" Hermione asked. "Couldn't it be a cave where they could have corridors and other places to hide?"

"When we investigated it, it was only a storage room," Mr. Weasley answered. "But we never went back at a later time."

"We checked the room in the last raid. It was empty. There were no corridors or caves," Shacklebolt added.

This made Harry think. There were no doors or corridors that the Aurors could see. There was always the possibility that it might be charmed to be secret, like in a Fidelius charm, or, even better, it might have a password in a special language, such as Parseltongue. Harry, immersed in his thoughts, started to plan. Around him, the conversation continued as everyone enjoyed a final moment of peace in the middle of the chaos.

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Harry borrowed Ron's broom and went to fly over the Quidditch pitch. He had become quite protective of his Firebolt, as it was the first gift he had received from Sirius. But he also knew that his trusted broom would be with him for the last duel.

While he flew, Harry planned. Malfoy had had at least two years to build an underground fortress before Voldemort was reborn. He could have worked on the place, leaving the final touch for when Voldemort was able to cast a Parseltongue password. The Fidelius charm would most likely be too complicated as the Death Eaters needed to get inside easily. There was too much traffic and too many new people for it to be feasible to have a secret-keeper. None of them were available all the time. Lucius had spent almost two years in Azkaban. Draco was at Hogwarts most of the time. From what everybody said, Narcissa was apt to close her eyes and pretend that nothing was happening while she could and Bellatrix was too crazy to be trusted, no matter her loyalty to the Dark Lord.

So Harry continued to fly as his mind wrapped around ideas and plans. He could potentially go to the border of the Malfoy area and search for an entrance outside their wards. Even with the house being empty and the numerous Ministry raids, the wards around the place were still impressive, another reason for the underground place to exist. Unlike the Hogwarts' secret passageways, the fortress should be inside the wards. Harry would have to be extra careful. After he entered the place, he would be completely isolated. There would be no chance to call for help. He would have to leave a message that would be found after he was already on the way, instructing the Order as to his whereabouts as well as where to go to find out the result of the final battle.

Sometime later, Harry finally landed and walked back to the castle. He had some preparations to make.

While people were enjoying the day, resting and talking, Harry went back to his room and prepared a knapsack with items that he thought would be useful. Inside went his trusted invisibility cloak, some common healing potions, and the communication mirror he shared with Ron and Hermione, to help them find him afterwards. In also went a rolled parchment on which he had the notes about the spells he was planning to use against Voldemort.

It had taken him almost all year to find these spells. As they traveled, he had written a lot to Bill Weasley asking about ancient curses and wards. He had also asked Charlie how they controlled the dragons in Romania and talked with Mr. Weasley about protective charms used to prevent Muggles to find out about the Wizarding World. He had finally wrapped it up with a good talk with Mad-Eye Moody about some good, almost dark, spells. By themselves, not one of them would be of great help. Together, interwoven with all of Hermione's mastery, their answers could mean the end of Voldemort's dreams.

After his knapsack had been packed, closed and charmed to fit in his pocket, Harry had only one last thing to do. Avoiding the people that were starting to go to dinner, Harry walked to the entrance of the Headmistress's office. He still found it difficult to think of the place as belonging to McGonagall and not Dumbledore.

"Lion's courage," was the password. And up the rotating stairs Harry went.

Harry knocked at the door just to be safe, but he knew that McGonagall would be in the Great Hall at this hour. He waited to come here, not wanting any more witnesses than he would already have. He needed to talk to Dumbledore's portrait but he didn't need anybody else knowing. He was also aware that Dumbledore himself would assure the silence of the other portraits.

Most of the painted figures were deep in conversation, discussing the news the Order had brought that day as well as possible outcomes for the near future.

Harry was not in the mood to listen to idle conversations or crazy speculation. So he butted right it.

"Uh, good evening. I need to talk to Professor Dumbledore."

"How rude! You should not interrupt your elders' conversations, young man!" A plump witch in a canary-yellow robe pouted.

"Okay, sorry to cut short the fun, but I really need to talk to Dumbledore and I don't have much time."

"That is alright, Gertrude," Dumbledore answered. "This young man has a very important mission ahead of him. We should not delay. We will have a lot of time on our hands to talk later, though." Harry was impressed how the twinkling on Dumbledore's eyes had been transferred to his portrait.

Murmurs and grudging acceptances ran around the office, but the portraits went back to their own paintings and started to pretend to not to listen to Dumbledore and Harry.

"Oh, my boy, it's so nice to see you again! And in such a good shape, if I may say so." The damned twinkling was there again.

"Well, it wasn't an easy year. But I have to thank Merlin that Ron, Hermione, and I came back in one piece."

"So you came here to tell me about your adventures this year?" The Headmaster smiled in anticipation.

"No," Harry answered. "I need to talk to you before I have to go away again. You can ask Ron or Hermione about this last year."

"But, Harry, if you finished destroying the Horcruxes, why do you need to go away again? Now would be the time to rest and start planning how to get rid of Voldemort. The Order and the Ministry were working on some plans. Nothing definitive yet, but they are good ideas."

"I'll not sit and wait for them to cook up some crazy plan. I already have a plan of my own and everything is set for me to go after Voldemort."

"Harry! You can't! You should not go alone! You need your friends with you. That's one of the reasons for the existence of the Order of the Phoenix. Everyone who joined is preparing to fight to the death for our side."

"Yeah, I know. I just don't agree. Nobody else should have to be there for the last confrontation between Voldemort and myself. It's my job. The prophecy says so."

"The prophecy says you have to deliver the final blow. It doesn't say you have to be alone." Dumbledore's eyes were full of sadness at this point.

"No, it doesn't say so, but this is my choice. I don't want anybody else to be there to draw my attention away from Voldemort. If I have to worry about somebody being hurt or dying, I won't be able to do my part."

"They are all adults, Harry. They are capable of making their own decisions."

"Yeah, about that. Decisions. I have questions to you. We never really had the time to talk." Harry bowed his head. He didn't want Dumbledore to see his eyes right now. He knew the portrait wasn't able to do Legilimency but the old man knew him so well that even his portrait would be able to read the anger in him right now.

The Dumbledore in the painting sighed as if a bit disappointed. But then he smiled cunningly, as the real Dumbledore used to do, and gestured for Harry to sit down in front of him.

"What do you want to talk to me about, Harry?"

"Choices. And decisions."

"Which ones, Harry?"

"Well, let's start simple, I guess. Why did you keep throwing Snape and me together?"

"Professor Snape, Harry."

"He's not a professor anymore."

"Well, yes. Well, I knew Severus had a grudge against James and Sirius and that you painfully reminded him of his school years; however, I also knew that he needed to get over it. He needed to forgive and forget. If he did not, he might lose his soul to the dark completely. Putting you two together was a way to show Severus that the time has passed, that he was not dealing with childhood nemeses anymore. He was an adult, and you were a young and different boy. You are not your father or your godfather, Harry. You might have the looks, you might have some traits, but you are your own person. I needed Severus to realize that."

"Hm. Didn't work very well, did it?" Harry asked dispassionately.

"Well…" The portrait seemed a bit lost. "No, I don't think it worked very well after all. Severus had more anger inside him than I thought."

"'There are some wounds that run too deep for the healing,'" Harry quoted.

"You remember our conversation," Dumbledore said, not sure if this was a good thing.

"Oh, yeah, I remember that day very clearly," Harry answered steely. "Next question: did you really believe that Draco could be persuaded to change sides?"

"Yes. Like Severus, young Mr. Malfoy needed some guidance and an opportunity to see the error of his ways."

"Again, this didn't work very well either."

"I still believe that if I had more time to talk with Mr. Malfoy with Severus as reinforcement, we could have brought him in." Dumbledore sighed.

"Hm," Harry murmured. "You should ask someone from the Order about his actions after he left Hogwarts."

"Nobody has said anything about him in this office. And Minerva is always so busy that I haven't had the heart to ask her much. Couldn't you tell me, Harry?"

"Oh, no! I will not be accused of having a biased opinion here. Ask somebody less involved," Harry said with finality.

Dumbledore's portrait sighed again. This did not bond well for his hopes. None at all.

"I think this is the last question I have for you: why did you never ask me?"

"Ask you what, Harry?" Dumbledore asked puzzled.

"Ask for my help. Ask if I want to do all of this."

"But you didn't have a choice. You are the one the prophecy talks about. You are the only one that can destroy Voldemort," Dumbledore answered, more puzzled.

"So you think that I don't have the right to choose my part in this, or at least how I would play that part," Harry said in a dry tone.

"Would you abandon the entire Wizarding world to the hands of an evil man, Harry?" Dumbledore asked sadly.

"Well, first of all, I never got the chance to think about it. And second, the Wizarding world has abandoned me plenty of times, why should I feel indebted with them?" Harry's callous attitude worried the ex-headmaster.

"Harry, mistakes were made, but that doesn't mean that people do not deserve your help."

"Well, they are a bunch of cowardly sheep that prefer to run and hide and let someone else take care of their problems. They like to judge others way too much. Even with Voldemort gone, I don't think the Wizarding world will have a peaceful existence." Harry continued with his hard posture.

"People are, in essence, good, my boy. They can be tempted. They can make mistakes. But if you open the right path, they will follow." Dumbledore said with wet eyes and the most benign expression he could muster.

"People are sheep ready to be lead to where the next wolf would take them." Harry wouldn't back down from his opinions. "And I don't agree that everybody is good. There's a lot of evil out there. I should know. I've met a good bit of it in my short life."

"Harry, I thought we had talked enough about my mistakes. I took too long recognizing the error of sending you to the Dursleys without proper supervision. I also know that I took a bit too long to see you as an adult. But I really thought that this was behind us," Dumbledore said, looking disappointed.

"What is irking me, Professor, is how I never got to choose. You left me in a place where I would never know love or respect. You then threw me into a new world where I would only feel worthy through acts of bravery and foolishness. And when I was feeling more lost than ever, you shot the prophecy at me, stating that I was the sole person responsible for the saving of the Wizarding world and even the Muggle world. Worlds that have never been good to me and have never given me anything besides pain."

"Harry…" Dumbledore started to interrupt.

"No!" Harry jumped from his chair and rushed forward to scream at the painting's face. "I will say all that I have to say! It is my last chance. After this conversation, I am going after Voldemort and I will end this war, but I will leave behind my opinions and grudges." The young man took a deep breath. "After all, you wouldn't want me to go to 'my next great adventure' carrying all of this inside my heart, would you?" he asked with sarcasm.

Dumbledore sat in the comfortable chair behind him looking sad and powerless.

"You never told me everything. You were always giving bits and pieces, but never giving me the whole picture." Harry started to pace around the office. "I never had a childhood. The Dursleys made sure of that. I had to grow up very quickly in order to avoid their taunting and their blows. Then, a shining light appeared to me. A new world. A place where I would be at home, but that also was not meant to be. I was still a freak, still different and set apart. And you 'guided' me, putting me on the path to heroism, making me feel responsible for whatever happened around me."

Harry stopped pacing and turned to look directly into Dumbledore's eyes.

"You never gave me the choice. Thinking back, even the one time I believed that it was all my choice, it wasn't. Hagrid filled my mind with images of my heroic Gryffindor parents and I then met Draco, the Slytherin. When the Sorting Hat offered one or the other, there wasn't much of a choice there, right?"

Harry bowed his head and signed. It took a few moments for him to once more gain control of his emotions.

"Why did you never ask me, Professor?" It was a very sad young man who asked that question. Whoever looked now would see the face of a seventeen-year old, but his eyes showed many more years. Too much. "Why did you never ask for my help or give me the choice in this?"

Dumbledore hung his head low, ashamed. Through all of the conversations he had had with Harry and others, he was able to recognize his mistakes with the boy's upbringing. But never had he doubted the young man's part in their world's situation. The prophecy stated that Harry was the one to rid them of the Dark Lord, so Dumbledore just proceeded with this knowledge. This was the first time he thought about the boy's position or right in the whole situation. His right to make the choice to be there and do whatever was expected of him. His right to be asked to help and to receive recognition for his actions.

"I am very sorry, Harry. Until now, I never thought about you in this way. After I heard the prophecy everything seemed so clear. You were the Wizarding world's hope and it was obvious that you would fulfill your destiny. I just went on and made all the decisions I thought were necessary to guarantee the outcome," Dumbledore answered with a broken voice, really crying now.

Harry stared at the crying portrait of his old Headmaster with sad understanding.

"You believed that everyone was entitled to a second chance. Just not me. I wasn't even entitled to a first chance. My entire life was set around becoming the ultimate weapon for the Wizarding world against the latest dark lord." Harry nodded and went on before Dumbledore could interrupt.

"What really makes me sad is that it will not end with Voldemort and me. Another dark lord will rise and another life will be destroyed in order to save the Wizarding world. A world that isn't willing to change to prevent another repetition of this sad situation."

Harry sighed and closed his eyes searching for control and balance. A few minutes and some deep breaths later, he opened his eyes to face the ex-headmaster again.

"I need to go now. Everything is ready."

"Harry, wait! You will be here to help the Wizarding world not to repeat its mistakes!" Dumbledore stood up and shouted at the young man.

"Maybe I will, maybe I won't. What I found out about 'the power he knows not' doesn't guarantee my survival."

"Then you must research more! You must re-think your plan! I never expected you to die doing this, Harry! If one was destroyed, the other would survive," Dumbledore pleaded.

"The prophecy says that neither can live, while the other survives. But it does not guarantee the survival of either. I did a lot of thinking and research, Professor. There is no other way if I want to finish this soon. And I don't believe that to wait a few more years would help the cause of the Light." Harry turned his back to the painting and went to leave a parchment over the Headmistress' desk.

"Don't say anything right now, Professor. Let them enjoy the rest while they can. I expect my mission will be over at the end of the night. They can sort out the mess tomorrow morning."

Dumbledore was at the edge of the painting as if he could jump out and grab Harry, to prevent him from going.

"Harry, I am so sorry…"

"It's in the past, sir. I just hope that you can help prevent another situation like this in the future," Harry answered sadly and walked away without a second glance.

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TBC… 


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks to _buttamellow_ from WizardTales (dot) net, _TheGreyLady_ from perfectimagination(dot)co(dot)uk for the beta of this chapter.

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**CHAPTER TWO**

Harry flew his Firebolt to the edges of the Malfoy wards. There was a small wood cluster that offered the perfect cover for a stealth passageway. He landed, shrinking the broom and putting it in the knapsack on his back. Then he conjured a snake and asked her to help find the entrance that should be hidden nearby.

It was easier than he expected, and the protections were quite sloppy.

_'The Death Eaters walk around in a hurry and don't want anything hindering their ways,'_ Harry thought.

He started through the tunnel, all the while casting charms and curses to prevent surprises from behind. He wanted to capture as many Death Eaters as possible but didn't want anything to prevent Voldemort's destruction. He prepared to keep new Death Eaters from entering the place while attracting the ones inside to a place where the Order and the Ministry could round them up.

When Harry found the first "room" in the caves he saw the marks indicating the Apparition and Portkey points. It should be the first place of gathering, and Voldemort's meeting room should be just ahead.

Harry started to place a variety of things the Weasley twins had handed down to him. Everything there would need to be toned down to be acceptable in the market, but they were just perfect for the Death Eaters. Harry wished he could wait around and take some pictures of the results, but he would to let the Aurors have this pleasure after all. He was needed some place else.

He continued ahead to find a double door with an impressive lock. Like so many things done by Voldemort, the doors were more of a show than an actual stopper to enter the room. Carefully, Harry found a hole in the cave wall to hide himself, using a Disillusionment Charm and his invisibility cloak. Casting a Silencing spell and a very discreet Notice-Me-Not, Harry sat down to prepare the next items he would need.

First he pulled out an Extendable Ear and very carefully guided it to the space between the cave wall and the door. He could hear some distant whispers but nothing clear. He was getting a bit exasperated when a voice came closer.

"I'll go back to the mansion, my Lord, and prepare everything for the gathering. I'll have a house-elf bring a meal for you."

"Make them prepare a smaller table. It will be just the five of us for dinner tonight," came the answer.

Harry became very still while the Death Eater exited the room and started to walk quickly down the tunnel, to the opposite side from where Harry came.

_'Five of them here. Voldemort and four from his Inner Circle.' Harry_ thought_. 'Let's seal the passage to the house. The house-elves will be able to bring the food here, but I would prefer that no other Death Eaters appear at my back. I will have enough to deal with as it is.'  
_  
Harry stood up carefully and followed the same path as the man until he saw a door well concealed in the cave wall. Using the Extendable Ears again, Harry could hear a distant voice shouting orders and hurried footsteps going up inside the house above his head. He didn't recognized the voice, but since he was planning for that particular Death Eater to not come back down, Harry didn't worry much about who he might be.

Taking a few more toys from his knapsack, Harry booby trapped the door, making the possibility of coming back through it very slim. He walked back to the entrance of the meeting room silently and once more crouched by the wall to finish his preparations for the attack.

Picking up the parchment, Harry opened it and re-read it carefully, just to make sure he wasn't forgetting anything. Making sure the Silencing spell was still working, Harry stood up and found the place where the Extendable Ears had passed through earlier. He carefully inserted the tip of his wand through the hole, closed his eyes and start chanting in Parseltongue.

He had tried some of it before; just to be sure no light would come out of his wand. But Harry had never done the entire incantation. He could only hope that all the calculations were indeed correct and the mishmash of curses and spells were well interwoven.

It seemed like hours to him, but not even five minutes had passed since he had started the spell. Harry finished it and again crouched against the wall, taking deep breaths to calm himself.

_'No shouting. No one running out of the room scared witless. It worked. Or didn't.'_ He thought between breaths. _'Well, I'll find out soon enough.'_ And he was back to the preparations.

Harry took some other WWW product he had brought out of his knapsack and proceeded to finish booby trapping the big doors before the "throne room" itself. Not that Harry thought of the place like that, but he would bet that Tommy-Boy would. And his Followers of Death would be too scared to not do the same.

_'Ninnies! All of them!'_ Harry thought. _'How can these guys think of themselves as superior when they choose to bow and crawl for a sick psychopath who thinks that a snake-face is a suitable appearance?'  
_  
While he was installing the surprises he had brought, Harry heard a house-elf popping inside the room bringing the food. Harry wondered what the right moment to attack would be and decided to sit and wait for Voldemort and his Suckers to, at least, reach dessert time.

_'Fighting with a full stomach isn't a good idea. You get slow and a bit complacent. Your body isn't "in the mood" for too much exercise. A good talk with some snakes was really an eye opener.'_

Harry made himself comfortable in his corner and reattached the Extendable Ear so he could follow the movements inside the room. The right moment would come. While he waited, he let his mind wander.

He was never one to immerse himself in deep thoughts. He would mull over the unfairness of his life, all the things that went wrong, and about the guilt he felt after some of his actions. He might have passed moody moments wondering about the possibilities of his connection with Voldemort or what he could do to make things better for everyone.

But he never just sat and got tangled with philosophical considerations about life in general. Why was he chosen to deal with this moment in time? Why did people cower away and let an evil rise and terrorize their own world? Why did people wait in shadows for a hero, a knight in shining armour to save them? Why did they let history repeat itself? Why should he feel responsible for any of it? Why did he felt like he MUST fulfill this prophecy and face Voldemort once more to guarantee his demise? Why was he so ready to sacrifice any kind of future life to see this done?

It was like having someone inside yourself pushing and propelling you to do something that you didn't even understand. Even with all his planning and with everything he brought to this fight, Harry couldn't fathom why he believed that this was the right moment to kill Voldemort or even how he really believed that he would succeed.

Noting the noise in the room diminishing, an indication of the end of the meal, Harry rolled the Extendable Ear and stuffed it in one pocket of his trousers. He wasn't using a robe or even a jacket. A simple black t-shirt with dark jeans was his battle gear. Beneath the t-shirt he had a dragon vest, a purchase he made thanks to some advice from Charlie Weasley. His boots were also from dragon hide -- this a hint from Bill. Harry didn't need anything holding him back. He needed mobility and speed.

_'I'll need a lot of luck here to make this happen,'_ he thought, while taking deep breaths to prepare himself.

He used a hairpin to pick the lock of the door, one more skill he had learned from the twins. No magic to call attention to himself and such a Muggle thing that the Death Idiots wouldn't even think of the possibility.

Harry opened the door with extreme care and was able to slip inside the "throne room", still under his invisibility cloak and the Disillusionment and Silencing Charms.

The table with Voldemort and his Ass-kissers were on the other side of the room, near a big rock throne-like chair. The five seated were in a very relaxed mood, and it was obvious that they had been drinking -- a lot.

Harry walked inside with the utmost care, sliding by the rock wall. He needed to get closer to the bunch before launching his attack. Harry planned to disable at least three of them plus Nagini before he had to worry about Voldemort.

There was no way in hell that he could take out four Inner Circle Death Eaters plus Voldemort just by himself. The booby traps at the door and the other places in the caves, and some surprises he still had with him were his "backup army." He was confident that if he had only Voldemort and another Death Eater to fight, he could get in position to finish this here and now.

Harry was able to walk to the throne-like chair and squeeze behind it, a mere three meters from his targets. Breathing deeply while trying to keep silent and covered by his invisibility cloak, Harry positioned himself to have a better view of the group.

Voldemort was at the head of the table, the one furthest away from Harry's position.

With their backs to the rock wall, Harry saw Bellatrix Lestrange situated at Voldemort's right side, completely immersed in the talk. Harry wasn't sure how he would deal with the bitch that had killed Sirius and tortured Neville's parents. He'd really tried to not listen to whatever she was doing during the last two years, but it was inevitable when the Order discussed the latest Death Eaters attacks.

Harry thought that he needed to take all the others first, because Bellatrix and Voldemort would be the toughest ones for him to deal with.

At her side, Lucius Malfoy seemed more interested in his drink than in the talk around the table.

Harry knew that he was one of the few who Voldemort was able to free from Azkaban. There was no way to make a really big break again, and Voldemort was too pissed off at the bunch that had been captured at the Ministry at the end of Harry's fifth year to make a big effort to free them all.

No, the dark figure just sprang the ones he needed the most. Malfoy had too much money and knew too much to be left to rot at the Wizarding prison. Not that he came out well, though. His eyes had that lost look that Harry had gotten used to seeing in Sirius's face. Lucius seemed to be lost inside his mind and cut off from contact with the world around him frequently. From the looks of it, Azkaban prison had not been a nice vacation time for old Lucius.

The worry now, for Harry, would be how much crazier the wizard had become. He didn't need another Bellatrix to deal with. Malfoy was bad enough with his head intact. There was no way to know what a completely deranged Lucius would be capable of.

Harry decided then and there to use the Egyptian mind entrapment curse that Bill had uncovered for him. Not a nice curse, much like having your own private Dementor inside your head, but Harry wasn't going to risk anything going wrong and losing his chance here.

He then turned his attention to the two wizards situated with their backs to him. The one closer to Voldemort was too caught up in the conversation with the Dark Lord and Bellatrix for Harry to be able to see any part of his face. But the man was thin and not very tall.

Running all the Inner Circle names he knew through his head and comparing them with the figure, Harry reached the conclusion that the guy should be Nott Sr., a Death Eater that hadn't made a lot of difference at the Department of Mysteries battle but would be important enough for Voldemort to rescue. After all, he was on the list of the prisoners that had escaped from Azkaban.

The fourth Death Eater had his face half turned in Harry's direction, but he seemed so down in his cups that Harry didn't worry about being seen. The man seemed to have drunk half of the Three Broomsticks cellar by the looks of it. He was swaying in his chair, making a conscious effort to bring the glass from the table to his mouth.

Harry recognized him almost immediately. After Snape had escaped Hogwarts on the night he killed Dumbledore, Mad-Eye Moody had checked his quarters, looking for information. He found some photos from Snape's school years, and this man was in a lot of them. Avery was the name Moody gave. Another scumbag that had wormed his way out of Azkaban after Voldemort's first fall thanks to the old excuse of the Imperius Curse.

No doubt there. He would be the first to fall. But Harry didn't want to show his hand too soon, without a chance to do more damage before he had to start defending himself. He sat for a moment, trying to think of a way to drop the Death Eater and not be discovered immediately.

The talk at the table continued with the indication of more alcohol being consumed. The way Avery was fighting to keep situated straight finally gave Harry the idea of what to do.

Aiming carefully, Harry used a moment of distraction in the talk over the table to fire a powerful but silent Stupefy toward the drunken wizard. The man fell over the table without a sound escaping his mouth. The others looked at him with disdain and went back to talking, or, in Malfoy's case, to staring into his glass.

Harry smiled to himself, happy to pull this off. Now he would have to bind the man whenever he got the chance. He did have a WWW creation that did just that – The Enemy Embrace – but he needed to get a bit closer to use it. For now, it was enough to have dropped one of the Death Eaters. His next goals would be Nott and Malfoy.

Right now Harry was more than happy with the idea that the Lestrange men were too crazy to be out of Azkaban. Those two plus Dolohov were the most important Inner Circle Death Eaters sent to Azkaban after the debacle in the Department of Mysteries. But a renewed acquaintance with the Dementors just threw both Lestranges out to the deep end and they lost their minds completely.

Voldemort was really angry about it, as Harry could testify thanks to a powerful vision following the second Azkaban break. But now was not the time for remembrances, but to plot and act in order to finish this soon. He really needed to take advantage of the surprise element here and work fast.

Harry repositioned himself to get in line with Nott and Nagini. If he could pour enough power in one destructive spell, he might be able to take the two of them at the same time. That would leave the worst three to deal with, but Harry wasn't in the position to take out both Malfoy and Bellatrix, so he better eliminate whatever and whoever he could.

Taking careful aim, Harry pointed his wand toward the table and chose an Egyptian curse he had learnt from Bill's curse-breaking: Iacio Telum Multi. This was a powerful spell that threw little metal spears toward an intended target. The beauty in it was that they weren't thrown everywhere, but cast to go only toward the ones at which he aimed. It was a very difficult curse to escape from. You need a physical shield to stop all the spears or the correct counter-curse.

Malfoy was still immersed in his own glass. Voldemort and Bellatrix seemed completely lost in each other eyes.

_'This image is so disgusting that I may be scarred for life,' _Harry thought.

Nott was nursing his drink. Nagini was the only one to perceive something wrong. She opened her mouth and her tongue slipped in and out, trying to identify the danger in the room.

But it was too late. The first little metal spears crushed against Nott's skull, opening a hole in his head and making the man crash against the table, blood pouring freely. The other spears kept flying until they reached Nagini's head. The force of the impact threw the big snake against the wall, literally impaling the beast. The shear number of spears that caught the snake was enough to sever her head.

This drew the attention from the other three dark wizards and witch at the table. Voldemort watched his pet snake be decapitated and screamed in rage. Bellatrix jumped from her chair when the perforated Nott's head reached the table. Malfoy finally took his eyes from his glass but stayed sitting, staring blankly at the two men now dropped over on the table.

"Find him! Find whoever dared to enter my throne room and attack Nagini!" Voldemort screamed, still focused on his pet.

_'Nice to know his priorities_,' Harry thought and crouched deeper, trying to stay as hidden as possible.

Bellatrix tried to move around the table to start searching the room, but Harry was quicker and rolled an innocent looking small purple ball toward them. The small ball bumped against one of the table's leg and exploded on impact. Since it happened closer to Malfoy, he was the first to be thrown away from the table and against the wall at his back. Harry was able to hear the sickening sound of a skull crashing against the rock.

"One more down. Let's hope I have the time to bind all of them before they can be revived," Harry murmured to himself while starting to move to get in a better position to reach the table.

Voldemort lost his footing, falling near his snake. Bellatrix was also thrown against the wall, but was able to protect herself with her wand arm. It got bruised and hurt, but she was still able to use it.

Still Disillusioned and under his invisibility cloak, Harry ran toward the table and threw the Weasleys Wizard Wheezes Enemy Embrace against Avery, the first dark wizard he'd Stunned. What looked like a small yellow spider touched the man's left shoulder and started to grow on impact. Each of the spider legs started to lengthen and wrap itself around the man. In a few seconds the wizard was enveloped in a cocoon of a yellow silk rope.

After a quick glance to make sure the WWW had reached its target, Harry threw a second Enemy Embrace over Malfoy, knowing that he didn't need to worry about Nott, and after seeing it land on the man's chest and start to encircle him, the young man jumped to find protection under the table.

While Voldemort and Bellatrix were screaming about the first explosion and the now-bound fellow Death Eaters, Harry took off his invisibility cloak and put it in the knapsack hanging on his back. Using the small chaos around him to take a few deep breaths and reinforce his mental defenses, Harry closed his eyes, bringing all his focus to the moment.

Harry rolled under the table, stopping at the point where he could look at Bellatrix's feet and again cast a soundless hex.

_"Incendio."_

The witch's robes caught fire and the flames climbed quickly over the fabric. Bellatrix screamed even more loudly, using her hands to try to dose the fire. She was still a bit dizzy from the impact with the wall and her wand arm was hurting enough that she didn't think of using a spell to end the flames.

"ENOUGH!" Voldemort shouted and turned his wand to the table. _"REDUCTO!"_

Harry had only seconds to roll in another direction to avoid a direct impact from Voldemort's powerful curse. He did put enough force in his movement to clear away from the table, a good move as Voldemort's curse caused the table explode into millions of tiny pieces..

Harry felt some of them reach his back but didn't stop his roll. The young man was finally close to the rock throne where he once more found protection.

The explosion of the table also caught the two wizards doubled over it. Nott was already dead, but his body was maimed even more and now small pieces and bits of him were splashed around the room.

Avery would die of loss of blood without immediate help, since one wooden piece of the table flew directly to his neck and punctured his jugular vein, letting the blood flow freely.

Malfoy had passed out after his contact with the rock wall and might have awakened, but now he had several small bits of wood all over his chest along with being bound by the yellow silk ropes. Small and maybe not life threatening wounds, but surely painful and debilitating enough to guarantee that he wasn't involved in the fight.

Not paying attention to the state of the already fallen Death Eaters, Voldemort turned to Bellatrix and shouted an Aguamenti charm to douse the flames eating away at her robes and body. The next charm was soundless, or cast in a really low voice, because Harry didn't hear anything, but he imagined that it was some kind of healing charm, since Bellatrix's legs were severely burned, and the woman should be in quite a bit of pain. Voldemort wouldn't want that, since she could be of help in this battle.

Harry made himself as small as possible to hide behind the rock chair and tried to control his breathing. Now it was just him against the mad and evil witch and the psycho dark lord.

Some noise could be heard from outside the room but it didn't signify that more Death Eaters or even some help for Harry was on its way. From the muted screams and crashing sounds he could hear, he could tell that the Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes he had scattered around the caves were doing their job wonderfully.

"Who are you?" Voldemort shouted to the room. "What do you think you will gain with this cowardly attack? Can't you face me directly?" he asked again with disdain in his voice.

"I WILL KILL YOU MYSELF, WIMP!" Belltrix yelled angrily, clearly in pain.

"Don't get worked up, Bella. This… worm made a stealth attack but won't be able to take both of us now that we are ready to pay attention to him."

Harry heard Voldemort start to walk around the room, probably trying to find the attacker while he talked to Bellatrix. By the sounds she was making while walking around, the healing charm had not been very good. She was groaning and stumbling.

Harry kept quiet, almost motionless, behind the rock chair. He was putting a lot of effort in his Occlumency.

He had never really mastered the thing, but developed enough control to cut out any attempts to read his mind during a fight or even a direct approach, like the ones Snape used during Harry's first lessons.

But Voldemort was another thing entirely. At a distance, Harry was able to block common visions and even some dreams. He never was able to block the uncontrollable emotions from the dark wizard. And Harry didn't have the faintest idea how things would work with both of them so close. While Voldemort was distracted, his Occlumency worked just fine. But if the psycho decided to test Harry's resistance or even tried another possession, Harry didn't know if he could resist or survive.

So, he decided, it was better to attack first before either of them could figure out what was happening.

The young man rolled away from the rock chair at the moment that Bellatrix approached it from the other side. She leveled her wand and shouted out her favorite curse.

_"CRUCIO!"_

Harry wasn't there anymore and was really happy to avoid the blasted thing. He turned his wand toward the woman and sent the Egyptian curse he had thought about using against Malfoy.

_"Incarcerous Mens Mentis Terror." _Again, it was cast soundlessly. This spell was supposed to imprison the mind into itself, using a fear from the person. Usually the human mind helped and applied the worst fear to the spell.

Bellatrix screamed and started to fling her arms and hands around, as if trying to bat away something.

Harry didn't wait to try to guess her worst fear. He stood up and ran to the other side of the room, trying to find a good position to face Voldemort.

The Dark Lord turned way having heard Bellatrix's screams and was even more enraged. He walked toward the witch and tried some finite spells but found that none worked. He let out a frustrated scream and turned his back to the out-of-control witch.

"THAT'S IT!" he screamed to the room. "If you're an honorable wizard you will show yourself now and we will duel!"

_'Since when are YOU an honorable wizard?'_ Harry thought. But while he was walking around, looking for the best position, his shadow was visible against the wall and Voldemort was able to pinpoint his location.

"YES!_ Ostendo!" _He screamed and cast the spell against the place where Harry should be, according to his shadow.

Since Harry hadn't stop moving, the revelation spell got him on his shoulder but was enough to indicate his position.

_"Crucio!"_ Voldemort shouted against the half visible person.

Harry jumped back, getting out of the way of the spell. Then he decided that the stealth play had to end and he ended the Disillusionment charm and turned toward Voldemort.

"POTTER! How did you find this place? How did you get in?" It was almost funny to see the surprise and disbelief in Voldemort face. Almost. Harry didn't think he could find anything really funny about the dark wizard.

"Well, Tom, you didn't hide as well as you thought you did." The patronizing tone plus the use of his birth name were feeding the older man's anger.

"Stop using that name! I'm Lord Voldemort! The most powerful and feared wizard of all times!"

_'Let's go again with the megalomaniac trip…'_ Harry thought with disdain.

"Face it, Tom, Lord Voldemort isn't such a cool anagram after all. And 'flight of death' just means that you're running because you're scared of it. You fear the unknown or did you hear too many Christian tales so you're really scared to end up in hell?" Harry asked, tipping his head to one side with an interested tone in his voice.

"Stop it! You know nothing! I don't fear anything!"

"You used to fear Dumbledore. So much, in fact, that you needed somebody else to kill him."

"I DON'T FEAR ANYONE! Dumbledore is dead! The old fool can't interfere anymore! He won't be popping up here and saving you today, Potter!" Voldemort seemed close to completely losing control.

"Yeah, Dumbledore won't be popping in here today, but I won't need it this time. That's it. This will be the last time. The last time we meet. The last time we duel. The last time you interfere with my life, Tom. Today… now, we end it. One way or the other."

"You think it would be that easy, Potter?"

"Easy? Nothing in my life has been easy. Why would this be? But I did come prepared to see this through to its end. Whatever end it is."

"It will be YOUR end, fool!"

"One thing I can promise you, Tom: I don't care how it ends for me, but YOU. WILL. NOT. WALK. AWAY. ALIVE." The intensity in Harry's words made Voldemort take a step backwards. His green eyes were shining with so much light that was almost painful to look at them.

For perhaps the first time since the graveyard, Voldemort took the time to look at Harry, really look at him and pay attention to the changes. In front of the dark wizard stood a young man with confidence and purpose. The young and scared boy that watched the Dark Lord be brought back to life three years ago had disappeared--or, at least, was very well hidden.

Harry leveled his wand at Voldemort's chest and launched a series of spells silently.

Voldemort was thrown off his feet, falling on his butt, and had to roll to escape this attack. But he recovered quickly and responded fiercely.

The two wizards battled around the room, endlessly moving or casting spells against each other. For the most part, the spells flew around silently, but from time to time one of them would shout out his intention.

"Incarcerous!"

"Flamas Infinitas!"

"You're a truly Dumbledore's man, Potter! You too think that there are things worse than death? You don't want to kill me?" Voldemort taunted Harry, with a smirk in his snake-face.

"Maybe I'm 'Dumbledore's man' in a lot of ways, Tom," Harry answered without stopping circulating the room. "And I do believe that there are a lot of things worse than death. But don't doubt that I DO seek your death. I'm here to destroy you, Tom. And I will." There it was again: the certainty and intensity that disturbed Voldemort.

"For someone that seeks my death, you are not doing a very good job," Voldemort said, using taunting as one more weapon.

"We are not in the right place or moment for that yet, Tom. Don't rush things. What's coming will come, no need to rush."

The calm tone and the intensity in Harry's voice were disturbing Voldemort immensely. The Dark Lord tried to corner Harry with a quicker and more powerful barrage of spells and was able to put the young man between himself and the still screaming Bellatrix.

With a quick change in his aim, Voldemort cast a powerful Imperius Curse on the witch.

"Use the Cruciatus on the boy, Bella!" Voldemort ordered.

Harry was able to half turn toward the witch before being hit with the curse. It was almost as powerful and painful as the ones cast by Voldemort. Harry thrashed around and tried to control his screams. He didn't want to give Voldemort the pleasure of seeing his pain.

But it didn't last long because the mind curse he had used on Bellatrix overpowered the Imperius, and she was once again too lost in her own nightmares to pay attention to her surroundings.

Voldemort used the opportunity to approach Harry and while he was on the floor, getting his breath back, the Dark Lord grasped his face and lock eyes with the younger wizard.

Now was the moment that Harry prepared for and feared.

_"Legilimens!"_ And Voldemort entered Harry's mind forcefully.

Harry was surprise that Voldemort's attack wasn't as bad as Snape's. For all the power and intent the Dark Lord had put behind this spell, Harry didn't feel the immediate pain or invasion he had become used to during his training with the hurtful Potions Master.

_'Voldemort hates me for what I stand for. As much as he hated Dumbledore. Snape hates me for what I am, for what he sees in front of him. It seems that a direct hate is more powerful than the image of hate.'_ Harry let the thought occupy his mind and felt the surprise and the lack of understanding from Voldemort.

But it wasn't the moment to get lost in philosophical wonderings of the nature of hate. Harry had a plan and he needed to put it in motion before Voldemort became aware of it.

He then opened up his mind to Voldemort. Harry didn't fight against the intrusion. He let the older man advance through his memories until he was in the darkest and deepest point in his mind.

Harry could feel the glee of the Dark Lord's mind when he encountered that place. The wizard believed he had found the "real" Harry. The thing that would help him turn Harry toward the Dark Arts.

What Voldemort didn't understand was that he had found the place in Harry's mind where the younger man kept all his memories of Voldemort himself. This hidden place was the container Harry had created during his Occlumency training to put everything related to Voldemort.

When the Dark Lord reached this dark spot, he was immediately confronted with himself. Harry almost laughed at the surprised and angered response from Voldemort's mind. But when the older wizard tried to back away, Harry used all his power and training to trap him inside his mind and in that dark place.

Immediately both of them were engulfed in pain, anger, fear and hate, rolling in a never-ending circle between the dark spot in Harry's mind and Voldemort's own mind.

The Dark Lord started to push magic through the connection in a desperate attempt to cut the connection.

Harry felt it like a blow but responded with his own magic, tightening his grip even more on the other man's mind.

If Bellatrix would have been able to fight against the curse holding her and started to pay attention to her surroundings, she would have seen Harry sitting on the floor, Voldemort kneeled by him, staring in each other's eyes. Their bodies trembled with the effort of their mind battle and small groans escaped their tightened lips. But nothing more gave away the titanic battle they were engaged in.

Inside Harry's mind, the magic was running wild. It was like a fight where the contenders pushed against each other, attempting to dislodge the other from his standing point. Right now, this battle was one of fierce power, even if it was magical mind power.

But Harry knew he would tire soon. He might be an equal to Voldemort in power – as the prophecy stated – but he didn't have the same experience to wield it. So it was time to end this. End the battle and all the suffering. It was time to end Lord Voldemort's second reign of terror.

Harry pushed his magic with all the force he could master to send the spell inside Voldemort's mind.

_'Deletrius Veneficus.'_

Voldemort was too astounded to react.

'What was that!'

'I erased your magic, Tom,' came the calm answer in Harry's mind.

'You can't do that! NOBODY CAN DO THAT!' Voldemort challenged in despair.

'Normally, you would be right. But with our magical connection and with you inside my mind right now, I think this will work.'

The connection between the two wizards' minds was ended and Voldemort was physically thrown away from Harry, landing on his back on the floor some distance away.

He started to scream while his body thrashed and shrunk. It was like magic was truly being bled away from him. All the rituals, all the magic the dark wizard had used through the years to enhance his powers and to deceive death were dripping away. This continued for a few moments more until only a mummy-like body was in the place of the once feared Lord Voldemort.

Harry pushed himself to stand up, feeling his legs trembling and making quite an effort to walk toward the destroyed dark wizard.

When he reached his side, Harry took off his knapsack that had survived the fight firmly attached to his back and opened it to pull out Gryffindor's sword.

With a mighty stroke, Harry embedded the sword in Voldemort's chest, chanting in Parseltongue at the same time.

Completely expended, Harry feel on the floor, letting the sword remain stuck in Voldemort's body. He contemplated the results of his actions, looking around the room.

Nott and Avery were dead.

Malfoy was still out cold and bound in yellow silk ropes.

Bellatrix was crouching by the side of the rock chair, embracing herself and moaning, rocking side to side, overwhelmed by the fears inside her own mind.

Voldemort's body was a mockery of his statements of power.

_'That's it,'_ Harry thought. _'It ended. It's over.'_

And he passed out without paying the slightest attention to all the commotion that could be heard from outside the room.

* * *

TBC… 


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks to _buttamellow_ from WizardTales (dot) net, _TheGreyLady_ from perfectimagination(dot)co(dot)uk for the beta of this chapter.

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE**

When the conversation around the table started to die out, Hermione finally took notice of something wrong. "Where is Harry?"

Ron put down his fork after finishing his third piece of apple pie and looked around the room. "I didn't see him coming to dinner. But he was really tired. He probably went to bed."

Hermione nodded but couldn't shake a bad feeling. During the last year's Horcrux hurt, Hermione had learnt to trust her instincts, sometimes over even her famous analytical mind.

"I think it would be better if we check," Hermione said standing up, ready to leave the table.

"Nobody could enter Hogwarts without an alarm sounding, Hermione," Kingsley Shacklebolt said. "Even if Harry decided to wander around the castle, there's no problem."

"Well, I wouldn't worry if Harry was _**in**_ the castle…" the girl answered. "The problem would be if he decided to leave it."

"Leave?!" Ron stood up in a fluid motion, an amazing feat considering how tall he was. "Why would he leave? We finally can rest a bit in a really safe place. And I told him that I've already started planning for the final attack against Moldy."

Ron had really tried, but he couldn't bring himself to say Voldemort's name out loud. So he and Harry had compromised: if Ron used something stupid and mortifying and never resorted to using the hyphenated epithets, Harry wouldn't bother his mate about the issue anymore.

In the end, the entire situation became an ongoing joke. Hermione even started to compile the names Ron invented and used, and the Twins put some of them in their jokes.

Hermione turned to her boyfriend. "Exactly, Ron. How many times has Harry told us he thought he should face Voldemort alone?"

"Oh…" The red-hair boy seemed lost in thought. "As many as you told him that we would never let him go by himself. And not as many as the times I told him I would bash his head in if he ran away from us."

"Yes, and since when does Harry Potter listen to reason, advice, or threats?" Hermione raised an eyebrow meaningfully. "That boy is known for his stubbornness."

"You don't think the prat just took off alone to find Snake-Face, do you?" Ron asked worried now, while he started to walk toward the doors of the Great Hall.

"That's exactly what I think," Hermione answered while jogging to keep up with the long strides of her tall boyfriend.

The rest of the table had held their silence during the couple's debate, but now restlessness and worry were grasping their minds.

Kingsley jumped off the chair and ran after the young couple, a sign that provoked everyone else into action. Soon a virtual crowd was advancing toward Gryffindor Tower, all of them praying that the young man in question was blissfully unaware of the commotion, sleeping in his bed.

Halfway to Gryffindor Tower, Headmistress McGonagall decided to check her office. She knew that Harry Potter always stopped by to talk with Dumbledore's painting whenever he was at Hogwarts.

McGonagall climbed the rotating staircase as quickly as she could and opened the door, a bit out of breath.  
"Minerva!"

"Albus! Have you seen Mr. Potter?"

"I tried to warn you, but nobody listened to the portraits in the corridors."

"We just left the Great Hall. Practically all of the Order has gone to Gryffindor Tower to check on Mr. Potter."

"He isn't there. He came to talk to me before dinner time. Minerva…" Albus's portrait seemed really tired and in despair. "He went after Voldemort."

McGonagall felt her breath catch -- partly because of the news itself, and also from hearing the Dark Lord's name.

"When? How?" She couldn't decide what she really needed, or wanted, to know.

Before Dumbledore's portrait could answer, the office was invaded by the members of the Order.

"Harry went after Voldemort." Dumbledore's portrait informed the crowd before anyone could ask, completely ignoring the winces as he uttered the Dark Lord's name. "He said it was his destiny; that nobody else needed to be there at the end." The portrait sighed sadly. "Harry was always alone when he faced Tom. I might have been able to help at the end, to wrap things up, but the main fighting was always done by Harry alone." The figure sat in the plush chaise that everyone recognized as Dumbledore's trade mark.

Chaos seemed to erupt in the crowded room with everybody shouting at the same time, making it impossible to understand what was being said.

"But how would Harry know where to go to find You-Know-Who?" Kingsley's voice sounded above the cacophony and made the others pause.

"He didn't have another vision, did he?" Lupin asked worried. "He didn't say anything about it. I thought that his Occlumency was working."

"No, no visions, I'm sure of it," Ron replied. "When they come, Harry has terrible nightmares. It's been some time since he has had any."

Again the voices raised around the room, with everybody giving their two pence about where Harry might have gone.

In the middle of the chaos Hermione's mind was working in overdrive. The young woman closed her eyes, remembering the last day's conversations and any hint Harry might have let slip. Suddenly her eyes opened wide.

"Malfoy Manor!"

Hermione's shout silenced the room and everybody turned to look at the brightest witch of her age, trying to understand her reasoning.

"What?!" Ron asked, echoing the question in everybody's mind. "What does the ferret family's house have to do with it?"

"Harry went to Malfoy Manor! He must believe that its where Voldemort is!"

A general wince followed the statement.

"And how did you reach that conclusion, Miss Granger?" Headmistress McGonagall inquired.

"During lunch, when Kingsley talked about checking the hidden room at Malfoy Manor, Harry was quite interested. He didn't talk much after that bit of information."

"But I said that there wasn't anything else there."

"And I asked about hidden caves. Maybe you didn't find it but that doesn't mean that it isn't there."

"And why wouldn't we be able to find it?" Shacklebolt asked a little upset that his professionalism was in question.

"If it has some kind of protection that you can't easily identify…"

"And what could that be? I wasn't there but I know that Aurors have a basic training in wards. They might not be able to put them down but they can recognize them and call a curse-breaker," Bill Weasley commented.

"And if the wards were put up through Parseltongue spells?" Hermione's question made a lot of people shudder uncomfortably with the idea.

"I've never encountered Parseltongue wards," Bill answered.

"Exactly! Aurors might not recognize it! Harry would!"

"The prat went without us!" Ron shouted, accepting Hermione's reasoning, his face getting redder by the second. "I'll kill him! I warned him!"

"Well, we will have to find out if he is really there and then find a way to get inside," McGonagall offered.

"Can we raid Malfoy Manor again?" Tonks asked.

"Scrimegour is still pissed off about the escape from Azkaban. Considering that Malfoy Sr. is one of the escapees and is still missing, if we have a lead about his whereabouts, we could do almost anything," Kingsley answered with a smirk.

"So let's get organized, people!" Hermione said, going to pick up some parchment and a quill from the Headmistress's desk.

Ron groaned but let his girlfriend take charge of the situation. But before someone else could offer an objection or even leave the room, Hermione let out a surprised shout. Again, everybody turned in her direction but only the ones in front of the Headmistress's desk understood.

"Harry left us a message!"

She opened the paper and read it aloud.

_Hi gang!_

_I believe everybody will be hearing this. Probably Hermione noticed that I wasn't around for some time and made everybody run around to try and find me._

"This boy knows you pretty well," Tonks smirked.

Hermione shot an annoyed look at the Metamorphmagus and went back to reading the letter.

_I know you all thought of being around for 'the last great battle', but I never believed it would be one. It's not Voldemort's way of doing things. And stop wincing at his name! How can you fight him if you can't even HEAR his name, not to mention speak it? _

It was Hermione's time to smirk at the crowd in front of her.

"He really knows us all."

_But back on track. The point is, the Dark Muncher doesn't go for crowds__ -- too much risk of someone getting his tricks. He likes small gatherings and to be in control. So I thought that I could break this habit of his. _

_This time I'll be the one in control. I'll choose the place and the time. And I choose now in his nice hideout._

_I know that Kingsley and the Aurors didn't find anything in Malfoy Manor, but I believe that Voldemort used Parseltongue to protect the place. But I bet that Hermione already thought of it. After all, I was training to use Parseltongue spells almost all last year. _

_I'm sorry, Ron. I know you have been planning a big battle and a nice checkmate, but you will have to keep these plans for your chess games._

_So I'll make your lives easier. I believe the entrance for the Voldemort's hidden place is somewhere behind Malfoy Manor, where there is a small wood. Probably a set of caves or something they dig in. No Fidelius, because it would be too much trouble with a lot of Death Eater traffic but Parseltongue wards. I'll dismantle everything I can and prepare some traps for the DEs. I don't want anyone crashing the party I planned for old Snake-Face. _

_I ask that you guys check out the house and the surrounding area with care. I don't want anyone hurt, or worse, because you think there isn't any danger. There might be some traps and I won't be looking for anything like this. _

_My plan is quite simple. Get in, isolate the room Voldemort is in, and strike. The less people with him, the easier for me. Then I'll take out Nagini, the last Horcrux, and the Dark Idiot himself. The end. _

_Hey, thanks to Gred and Forge, because I'll be using a lot of their stuff to get through this. So watch out for these too._

_I won't leave any kind of heartfelt goodbye here. I'm counting on you guys to take me out of there after I finish my job. Anyway… if something happens and I don't come back… Well, Gringotts has everything needed to sort this out. _

_Wish me luck._

_Harry_

_P.S. Ron, if I survive Voldemort, you have my wholehearted permission to bash my head in for running away from you guys._

Mrs. Weasley's sobs were the first to be heard after Hermione finished reading the letter.

Almost everyone had tears in theirs eyes or some difficulty in swallowing. Even with the emotionally charged situation, the Weasley twins couldn't let the opportunity pass them by.

"So, for now on, our products will have the stamp: 'Used and Approved by Harry Potter'…"

"…'during the extermination of the Dark Idiot.'" Fred completed his brother's phrase.

"Harry hates this kind of publicity…" Ron let escape, not really sure what to do now.

"Focus, people!" Moody yelled. "We need to organize a party to go after Potter and a way to check the place and apprehend the Death Eaters there!"

"How could he just go by himself?" Mrs. Weasley wailed.

"Not now, Molly!" Arthur cut her off. Mrs. Weasley sobered immediately. The group turned to Arthur; nobody had ever heard him talk like that to his wife.

"We are all worried, but we need to go after him. He may be fighting You-Know-Who this exact instant!" the red-haired man said.

"Arthur is right. We will have time for emotional displays afterwards," Lupin completed.

"I'll check with Poppy and prepare the hospital wing," Minerva said and exited the office.

"Well, let's organize the groups. Everybody, go to your rooms and grab whatever you think you will need. We'll meet in the Great Hall in five minutes!" Moody screeched and left the room.

The rest of the crowd dispersed soon after, each one running in a different direction to comply with Moody's directives.

Hermione locked her wet eyes with her boyfriend's.

"He really left without us, Ron. I didn't believe he could do it." She fought to control her tears.

"Deep down, I knew he would never let us go with him. He hated how much danger we were in during the Horcrux hunt."

"And if something happens to him? If he's deadly hurt? And if V… Vold… You-Know-Who kills him?" The young woman was hiccupping in her boyfriend's arms now.

Ron knew that Hermione was beyond worried when she couldn't say Voldemort's name.

"Harry will win, Hermione. That's what he trained for. That's everything he could think of these last months. He will win. He_ HAS_ to win!" Ron embraced Hermione and put all his faith in his words. He needed it to be true. He didn't know what he would do if it wasn't.

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Fifteen minutes later the assigned groups left the Great Hall.

Poppy Pomfrey, Minerva McGonagall, Molly Weasley, and Ginny Weasley – to her utmost disgust – went to the hospital wing to prepare the place for possible injures after the fight.

Professor Sprout would take care of the security around the castle, checking with the few other teachers around during the summer holiday and coordinating with Hagrid so no one and nothing could surprise them at Hogwarts.

And finally, the rest of the Order of the Phoenix were divided into two groups: one to find the hidden passage to the caves below the house and another to storm Malfoy Manor itself.

Arthur Weasley went to the Ministry to talk with Minister Scrimegour and ask for some Auror backup. Nobody was really counting on it, but it was best to be as honest as possible with the politician. They didn't need a new enemy if Harry was able to destroy Voldemort.

The Weasley brothers were with the group that would search for the caves. Bill was prepared to tackle any kind of ward or booby-trap in the way. Charlie was a powerful wizard, used to tense situations. The twins would know what to do if they encountered any of their inventions. And Ron wouldn't listen about not going the same way Harry did.

The same was valid for Hermione. She simply had to go the same way as her friend, and she would never let her boyfriend out of her sight in a dangerous situation.

Mad-Eye Moody and Remus Lupin completed the group.

The Aurors and the older members of the Order would assault the house. Kingsley Shacklebolt assumed the leadership of this group, which had Tonks and Kenneth Towler, a recent graduate from the Auror Academy, as the official representatives for the raid. From the Order of Phoenix they had Elphias Doge, Sturgis Podmore - healthy again after his stay at Azkaban - Hestia Jones, the recently inducted Amos Diggory, and Professor Flitwick, who was, after all, a champion duellist.

They knew that it wasn't much, but this was all they could count on on such short notice. They all could only pray that Arthur's mission was successful, and the Minister would send reinforcements.

But now wasn't the time to dwell about the situation. This was a moment for action.

Kingsley prepared two Portkeys and offered them to both groups.

"We will arrive outside the wards. Ron checked and found out that Harry took his Firebolt with him. So I would say it's safe to assume he flew inside the wards. Let's try that too. Whoever doesn't have their own broom can take one from the school."

Hermione groaned at that. She knew how to fly, as she knew the theory of almost everything, but she didn't like it.

"Don't worry, Hermione. You can fly with me. The Nimbus 2001 that Bill and Charlie gave me last Christmas will take us both without problem." Ron hugged his girlfriend encouragingly.

"So, wands at the ready! CONSTANT VIGILANCE! And let's end this now!" Moody shouted to the group and started to hobble out of the Great Hall and Hogwarts, so they could clear out of the anti-Portkey wards.

The rest of the attack force followed the seasoned Auror with less alacrity but no less determination.

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The group led by Kingsley jumped on their brooms as soon as they landed after the Portkey travel. They flew low, trying to not attract too much attention from anyone that might be looking from one of the house's windows.

But all the caution went literally flying to the wind when they arrived at the big door of Malfoy Manor. They could hear shouts and spells being thrown inside.

Kingsley approached the entrance carefully and was able to see that at least five Death Eaters were attacking a concealed door at the floor, in front of the massive staircases that lead to the rest of the mansion.

"I think we found the first trap Harry left." Kingsley reported to his group. "Looks like he locked the entrance to the hidden room we checked in the last raid. He must be right. There should have been a passageway between that hidden room and wherever You-Know-Who and his minions meet."

"Okay," said Kenneth Towler, the youngest Auror. "What do we do now? Just barge in?"

"We could start with a big explosion and then pick through the pieces afterwards," Tonks suggested.

"I'm all for that plan," Elphias Doge provided.

"So, together, we use Reducto. When we get in, bind anyone you find. We'll sort it out after we have cleaned the place," Kingsley said, already positioning himself in front of the big door.

The rest of the group arranged themselves by both sides of Shacklebolt, wands at ready.

"One… Two… THREE!" Kingsley counted, and eight voices shouted together.

_"REDUCTO!"_

The wooden door exploded inward and after the dust and debris settled, the Light warriors could see five people in black robes and white masks spread around the floor.

The group ran inside and conjured ropes to bind the Death Eaters. Tonks, Kinglsey and Towler advanced to the other rooms on the first floor, looking for more enemies.

Hestia Jones and Amos Diggory piled up the captured Death Eaters so Diggory could make a Portkey and send them to Hogwarts' hospital wing.

Elphias Doge and Sturgis Podmore climbed the stairs carefully to check the second floor.

Professor Flitwick stopped by the trap door of the hidden room to try and remove whatever trap Harry had left there.

The Aurors came back to the entrance hall with two new prisoners that were quickly dispatched to Hogwarts. They started to climb the stairs to meet the Order members when a commotion started on the second floor.

While a full blow battle seemed to explode on the second floor of the house, a series of pops were heard outside the house and Flitwick, Jones, and Diggory turned to the destroyed door, positioned to ward off any new attack.

But it was a group of at least 30 Aurors that came running inside. There weren't any uniforms for them, but most of the group wore blue robes, and all of them had their wands up front and at the ready.

"Where is Shacklebolt?" asked the man up front who seemed to be in charge of the group.

"He just ran upstairs. It seems that they encountered some resistance there," Diggory answered.

"Okay, Binnings and Caldwell, sweep this floor and guard any entrances." He pointed out toward a young woman and an older man. Both just nodded to acknowledge the order and then ran out of the hall.

"Crisswell, you stay here and help with whatever they were doing." Another young woman nodded and approached Professor Flitwick.

"You're Diggory, right?" The man in charge asked.

"That's me."

"Come with the rest of us. I don't want Shacklebolt getting nervous if he doesn't recognize or doesn't trust us."

Diggory patted Hestia Jones' back and went upstairs with the rest of the Aurors.

Professor Flitwick, Jones, and Crisswell turned back to the trap door and started to work again to remove whatever was there that wouldn't permit their entrance.

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The group led by Moody and an overflow of Weasleys landed seconds after the Aurors and the Order members.

They saw the other group jump on their brooms and fly low towards Malfoy Mansion.

Moody signed to the group to approach and started giving orders in a low voice. "The entrance should be in the back and hidden, so we should expect traps from Death Eaters and maybe even Potter. Let's fly low and carefully around the house but closer to the woods."

"Harry should at least have a couple of portable swaps and a new invention we call Enemy Embrace," Fred stated.

"That should explode in strong silk ropes upon contact," George completed.

"So pay attention to suspicious small yellow spiders," Fred offered.

"Spiders?!" Ron shouted.

"Silence!" Moody slapped Ron's head. "What else might we encounter?"

"Well, purple balls are explosive," George said.

"We have a really comprehensive line of battlefield products that we gave Harry to experiment with," Fred answered with pride.

"We did take some of it during our quest for the Horcruxes," Hermione said.

"But there weren't any spiders!" Ron said, trying to contain a scream.

"Well, knowing the twins…" Charlie started.

"And Harry," Bill completed.

"It would be better if we pay attention to anything that shouldn't be in an open space near some woods," Lupin offered his two pence to the discussion.

Moody sighed and shook his head. "Sometimes I don't know if we should be more afraid of these three or the Death Eaters…"

"Oy! Of course you should fear us more!" Fred stated.

"We are your friends!" George said.

"We can attack without rising any suspicious!" the Weasley twins completed together with laughter in their voices.

"Enough!" Hermione said, trying to establish some order.

They mounted their brooms, and when they started flying towards the back of the house they heard the explosion from the front door.

"I would say that Kingsley wasn't in the mood to wait for some house-elf to open the door," Charlie joked.

"Let's hope they didn't wake the dead with that explosion," Moody growled.

A few sounds of agreement could be heard among the group while they kept flying low and carefully.

The back of the house appeared quickly and at some distance a group of trees was illuminated by the lights of spells.

Moody gestured for them to spread out and advance in a semi-circular formation so they could surround the Death Eaters in the ground.

When the Order's warriors approached the place where they thought they would encounter a full fledged battle going on, it took a lot of self control – that not everyone had – to not fall off of the their brooms laughing.

They could see an entrance of a cave or maybe a tunnel by the side of the house. In front of it, forming a V were two Weasley's Portable Swamps and at least twenty Death Eaters fighting to get out of it. Some were too caught up in the mud and could barely move. Others had one arm out of the trap and were shouting spells without aiming, and nobody could think of a purpose for that.

A few of Voldemort's minions passed unharmed through this trap but were caught in something else inside the tunnel. The Order's group could hear the screams and the bawling from inside.

The smart ones probably just fled when they saw their companions disappear in the middle of this madness.

Moody, Lupin, Bill, and Charlie draw their wands and Stupefied all the Death Eaters inside the swamps.

Fred and George spread out a thin net around the entrance, creating protection for them to work.

"We thought that this would be really good for little children, so the parents could place them somewhere and not worry if they would run away," Fred informed while working.

"The Filch Magical Safety Net is its name," George completed, helping his brother.

"I liked the idea," Hermione said, after landing with Ron and started taking the pre-made Portkeys from a backpack. "But I don't think you should, or even could, use Filch's name on it."

"Yeah," Ron contributed for the discussion while helping Hermione. "It will scare the kids to death. And the parents probably don't have good memories of him either."

"Less talk, more work!" Came the shout from Moody, startling the four young people.

"We're going in the tunnel," Bill informed his brothers. "And we will look for Harry."

"Pick up these guys, tie them right, and send them to Hogwarts," Remus instructed.

"And pay attention if somebody else appears around here." Charlie contributed.

"CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" It was the last warning from Moody before the four adults shrunk their brooms and started to walk towards the tunnel's entrance.

"Oy!" Fred complained. "They'll find Harry and see some action…"

"…while we stay here and take care of the garbage!" George finished.

"Let's do this quickly…" Ron started.

"And right!" Hermione demanded.

"Yeah. Quickly and right, then we can go after them."

"To work, then!" Fred and George shouted together.

While the younger ones took care of the mess outside, the other four Order members ventured inside the tunnel, keeping close to the walls.

Bill sent some kind of spell into the tunnel and gestured for the others to wait.

"This is a handy spell that I picked up in Egypt. Works a bit like a Muggle radar. It will send flash of red if there are traps ahead."

When a flash of green lights popped ahead of them, Lupin questioned.

"And what green means?"

Bill smirked.

"That all the traps were activated. Whatever was here, the Death Eaters sprung them and were caught."

"I didn't know about this," Moody groaned, a bit upset to be overshadow by the younger man. "And what's a Muggle radar?"

"I'll show you later, Alastor," Lupin offered.

"And I can teach this one so it can be included in the Auror Academy," Bill offered.

"Hmph. Lumos!" was the answer from Moody.

Harry must have used some explosive purple balls and some rope spiders at the beginning of the tunnel. The four of them found eight Death Eaters unconscious and with a variety of wounds. Lupin and Charlie were quick to bind and put them together, using just two Portkeys to take them out of there.

After that the tunnel opened up in a big room with marks indicating Apparition and Porkeys arrivals. Because of some objects in the floor, they knew they should expect Death Eaters ahead.

The four men walked carefully ahead after casting spells on their feet for silence. They reached the end of another tunnel and could hear some shouts and some spells being thrown.

Lupin picked up a small stone and transfigured it in a mirror. Then he levitated it toward the noise.

The Order members could see five Death Eaters battling against a double wooden door.

"Dolohov and Parkinson," whispered Moody, immediately recognizing two of them.

"Bulstrode and…Marcus Flint?" Lupin said, surprised.

"Well, it doesn't matter the names, just that we have to take them out," Charlie offered.

"No, no," Moody corrected the younger man. "You must know your enemies. Dolohov is a vicious bastard. He likes painful and slow-to-kill curses."

"I saw Mr. Flint in his final year at Hogwarts." Lupin informed. "Underhanded and treacherous."

"Well, by the size of him, I would say that it's better to keep your distance of Bulstrode," Bill smirked. "I haven't eaten enough meat today. Maybe I could have a taste of him."

Lupin shook his head from the playfulness that Bill used toward the werewolf tendencies he'd had since the wounds he suffered on the attack on Hogwarts last year.

"You better not," Lupin said. "Can you imagine a guy this size with werewolf strength?"

"Okay. I stand corrected."

"Let's stop this tea time chat and do something!" Moody whispered, annoyed.

Before any of them could respond, a loud explosion was heard from the other side of the cave. The Death Eaters moved away from the door and turned towards the sound.

The twins, Ron, and Hermione arrived, running, and slammed against the cave's walls, breathing hard.

"What was that?!"

"I think our people opened the entrance through the house."

"Let's go and surround the bad guys!"

The eight of them ran ahead, wands at the ready, shields raised and full of determination.

From the other side, they saw the diminutive Professor Flitwick launching a barrage of spells and two women behind him doing a very good job of shielding.

Moody, Bill, Charlie and the twins attacked from their side while Lupin, Ron and Hermione worked to keep shields and deflect any spells that might be thrown their way.

It didn't take much time for the Death Eaters to understand that they were surrounded and outnumbered, and they tried to Apparate away. But since there was a woman with Hestia and Flitwick that the others didn't recognize, it could only be assumed that the Aurors had come to help. And that meant Anti-Apparition wards.

When the five Death Eaters couldn't Apparate away, they turned against the three on the stairs towards the house that they believed to be weaker. But Flitwick wasn't a Duelling Master for nothing, and some of the spells he was shouting were borderline dark but quite effective.

Hestia Jones started to bleed after a spell from Dolohov hit her wand arm. Moody didn't miss the opportunity and used a powerful cutting hex at the man's back. Dolohov fell on the floor and was immediately trampled by Bulstrode, who was occupied trying to take Bill out of the fight.

Marcus Flint was quick and brutal and caught Charlie with a breaking bone hex, just to be felled by a shower of pebbles that Hermione produced after a well placed Reductor Curse on the cave's ceiling.

Parkinson and the unnamed Death Eater were much more interested in surviving without dangerous wounds and were quick to throw out their wands, screaming "Surrender!"

Mad-Eye wasn't a man to take risks, so he Stupefied both men and bound them carefully.

Lupin and Flitwick took care of the two felled enemies and turned in time to see Bulstrode scream like a girl when the twins threw four yellow spiders over him. In less than a minute the big man was tied like a sausage in powerful yellow silky ropes.

"See, Ron, you're not the only one…" Fred said between laughs.

"...Afraid of spiders," George completed, also laughing hard.

"This will be a success!" The twins shouted together.

"Just keep those things away from me," answered the younger Weasley.

The Auror Crisswell was taking care of Hestia Jones's wound while Lupin and Moody finished the Death Eater package to send to Hogwarts.

Hermione was kneeled by Charlie's side, putting to use all her Healing knowledge.

Hestia used a Portkey for Hogwarts' hospital wing, and Flitwick went back to the house with Crisswell to check on the Aurors and the rest of the Order.

Charlie absolutely refused to be evacuated before they found Harry, so the group went back to the wooden door. There they could hear voices and spells being thrown around.

"If five of them couldn't open this door, what we'll do?" Ron asked tired.

"Brother of little faith," Bill joked. "I'm a curse-breaker for Gringotts, am I not?" And the oldest Weasley son started to work on the door.

"Little bugger!" Bill whispered just seconds after starting to check the spells on the door.

"What?" The Twins asked together.

"Harry mixed together some Egyptian's spells I taught him and created a very interesting locking charm."

"Harry created a new spell?" Hermione asked, torn between being proud and jealous.

"Nice job, Potter!" Moody whispered.

"Ah, a true Marauder at heart," Lupin smiled.

"Well, can we leave the praise for AFTER this battle?" Ron asked a little miffed.

"Okay, let me try this." Bill stepped back and used some complex wand movements and whispered something that wasn't English.

The screams from inside the room rattled the group and Bill tried to work faster.

When there was silence on the other side of the door the group grew even more worried.

Hermione latched to Ron's hand, squeezing it to the point that the young man couldn't quite feel it anymore.

The twins were holding Charlie, standing up and getting really nervous, shifting their feet.

Lupin started to growl without noticing and Moody gripped his wand tighter.

Finally Bill finished and the double door opened inward with a bang.

"HARRY!" Ron and Hermione screamed at the same time and ran into the room, not paying attention to anything else.

* * *

TBC… 


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks to _buttamellow_ from WizardTales(dot)net and _TheGreyLady_ from perfectimagination(dot)co(dot)uk for the beta of this chapter.

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**CHAPTER FOUR  
**

Pomona Sprout did some coordinating with the other professors to guarantee the protection of the school and the containment of the Death Eaters that would arrive through Portkey. A room nearby the hospital wing was prepared to keep the captured Death Eaters until they could be delivered to the Ministry. Hagrid was patrolling the grounds, closer to the building because it was no use to spread their few resources even thinner.

In the hospital wing, the designated healing squadron was as ready as possible. Headmistress McGonagall, Madam Pomfrey, Mrs. Weasley and Ginny Weasley all sat rigidly inside Madam Pomfrey's office, waiting for the alarm that would sound when one of the pre-made escape Portkeys passed through Hogwarts' wards into the Hospital Wing.

None of them tried to start a conversation. None was keen to have small talk, and the one subject that could interest them would only increase the tension in the room. Especially for Ginny, who was beyond angry about her mother's decision to not let her go with the group to rescue Harry.

The teen sat in her chair, arms crossed over her chest, her feet swinging skittishly, her head bowed to escape the stares of the others.

If they had been checking the time, they would have known that it had been around fifteen minutes since the groups had departed when the first pre-made Portkey was activated, and a group of five Death Eaters arrived in the middle of the Hospital Wing.

The four witches ran to attend the wounded. They floated each one to a bed and dispelled the ropes but made sure that the prisoners were Stunned or passed out.

They treated their injuries and then rebound the ones that didn't have anything too serious. Only one person of that group had any major wounds that would need a more capable healer from St. Mungo's. But they needed to wait for an update on Arthur Weasley's mission with the Ministry before moving anyone there.

Headmistress McGonagall called for the help of some house-elves, and the little creatures happily went to work, pegging numbers in the Death Eaters robes and then a correspondent number on their wands. Their white masks were also taken and labeled for future reference. Then the elves levitated the Death Eaters to the room previously prepared to keep prisoners and locked them there.

The elves returned to the kitchen and their usual chores, and the witches seated themselves once again, waiting for the next wave of wounded and prisoners.

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Next came two prisoners only Stunned and bound. Again a call from McGonagall brought a couple of house-elves that processed the prisoners in no time at all.

After these two were locked in the makeshift cell and the four women were again seated and prepared to wait, the fire in the Hospital Wing flared up and Arthur Weasley stepped out of it, soon followed by five Aurors, Minister Scrimgeour himself and, of course, his assistant, Percy Weasley.

Minerva McGonagall stood, walking toward the group of men. "Minister!"

"It seems that Mr. Potter has once again gone off without informing anyone."

"Potter believes that he was the one that should face of You-Know-Who, Minister. He left some information so we could follow him." Headmistress McGonagall responded, feeling pressured to defend the young man.

"Hmm…" Minister Scrimgeour looked around the room. "How long has it been since he went to… Where was it, Weasley? Malfoy Manor?"

"Yes sir, Malfoy Manor. That was the information that was passed to us," Percy answered, not looking toward his father.

Molly Weasley stood up and hurried to approach her husband. She couldn't control herself and tried to talk to her son. "Percy…" But she was abruptly interrupted by the Minister himself.

"How is it that the Aurors have made a series of raids there and never found anything? The way Mr. Potter keeps _'discovering_' information that nobody else has been able to dig out is becoming quite suspicious."

"As I explained at the Ministry," Arthur answered, clearly out of patience with the man and his attitude, "a comment alerted Harry to the possibility of wards being made with Parseltongue spells. Since nobody else besides You-Know-Who and Harry himself can speak Parseltongue, not even the best curse-breakers would be able to identify them. That's why the Aurors couldn't find anything more at Malfoy Manor. But if Harry has brought down these wards, everybody else would be able to pass through."

"We have seven Death Eaters in custody. One of them should be sent to St. Mungo's for treatment. The other six are bound and locked in a room," Minerva informed.

"Smythe!" Scrimgeour called. "Go with this wounded Death Eater to St. Mungo's. If he is released, take him to the holding cells in the Ministry. If not, stay with him at the hospital."

The man walked toward the bed where the prisoner lay, touching his chest at the same time he activated a Portkey. The two wizards vanished from sight.

"And this place where you are holding the other suspects…?" the Minister asked.

"A room nearby," McGonagall answered shortly, peeved with the man's attitude.

"Well, I think we should check on them." Scrimgeour turned to leave the hospital wing, followed by the remaining Aurors and Percy.

"Minister!" Arthur Weasley called. The group stopped by the door and turned to look at the man. "Are you going to assume responsibility for those men?"

"What do you mean?"

"I believe that they have been bound, their wands taken, correct?" Arthur asked Minerva in a formal way.

"Yes, Arthur. Their wands were tagged, as were the men themselves, so we would be able to know which wand belongs to which man. Their masks were also taken and tagged," Minerva answered.

"Since this… operation was organized and executed outside the Ministry scope, I would say that it is necessary to establish the limits and responsibilities here. You already assumed responsibility for that Death Eater that Auror Smythe accompanied to St. Mungos." Arthur was in his best public servant behaviour.

"What do you mean by limits and responsibilities?" Scrimgeour seemed a little lost.

"The Minister didn't assume any kind of responsibility in this situation!" Percy intervened.

"Well, when the Minister accepted the fact that the wounded man was a Death Eater captured during tonight's operation and assigned Auror Smythe to guard him, he was acknowledging and recognizing the legitimacy of the action."

"I did no such thing!" Scrimgeour exclaimed.

"By Ministry regulations you did, sir," Arthur answered calmly.

Scrimgeour and Percy snorted almost at the same time, an expression of contempt on their faces. The four Aurors were quiet and trying hard to appear invisible behind the two politicians.

"Where do you want to go, Weasley? What do you expect to gain from all this babble?"

"Gain, Minister?" Arthur answered, a false expression of surprise on his face. Even if he didn't play the high political games around the Ministry, it didn't mean he didn't know how to do it.

"I think there is a need to be clear who is responsible for what in this situation. We have a large group of civilians going into battle with You-Know-Who and the Death Eaters in what could be his main stronghold." Arthur stopped to take a deep breath and risked a quick look around the room.

Minerva McGonagall was wearing her most severe expression, but, at the same time, her eyes were shining, in her version of the twinkling for which Albus Dumbledore was famous.

Poppy Pomfrey was a bit away from the main discussion, seated on a bed, clearly having fun with the dancing of words between the two men.  
Ginny was watching the display avidly, chewing her nails. That was a side of her father that she had never seen, and she was quite impressed. At the same time, Ginny felt an almost uncontrollable desire to deck Percy in the head because of his pompous behaviour. Even after Dumbledore and Harry had been proven correct, the prat didn't see it fit to apologize to any of them, especially their parents.

Molly Weasley was torn between outmost pride in her husband's attitude and a mother's pain because her son – one of her babies – was being such a… git!

Arthur Weasley once again stared at the Minister and his 'assistant'. It was easier if he didn't think about Percy as 'Percy, his third son.' It was better, in this situation, to think of him as 'Weatherby, the sickly subservient assistant of the Minister.'

"As I was saying, Minister, if the actions of this civilian group are acknowledged and recognized by the Ministry, then this entire operation can be treated as a joint effort." Arthur let his words sink into the other men's minds.

"Since you assigned an Auror to keep guard of a prisoner retrieved by this civilian operation, I assumed you had already decided to work with them. This way we can assure that the ones deserving it will be arrested and thrown in Azkaban. And none of the brave men and women that are risking their lives this very moment will suffer for their courage… and independence." Arthur breathed loudly. "If this is to be declared a joint effort, the success will be spread over all involved." Arthur concluded.

"We don't want the prizes, Mr. Scrimegour," Minerva McGonagall completed. "But we want the certainty that things will be done right this time around."

The entire political discussion lost its appeal when a new group of Death Eaters was Portkeyed into the Hospital Wing. They were dirty and Stupefied. The Minister, Percy, and the Aurors stayed back while the four witches dealt with them.

Following this lot, the Death Eaters kept coming in groups, a few with wounds, all of them Stupefied and bound.

Molly, Minerva, Poppy, and Ginny worked quickly around the prisoners, identifying the ones in need of medical attention and the ones that were out cold.

This time Minerva didn't have to call for the house-elves. As soon as the first Portkeyed group arrived, a couple of elves showed to tag and claim their wands. With the increase of incoming prisoners, new elves kept popping around the Hospital Wing.

The influx of prisoners diminished and the people and the elves in the Hospital Wing began to relax.

But then two new arrivals rattled all of them. A wounded woman appeared on the floor, close to Madam Pomfrey. "Hestia!" Headmistress McGonagall screamed, running toward the Order member.

Seconds later a group of five Death Eaters landed in the middle of the room. Molly, Arthur and Ginny ran toward them. Arthur separated the three men that were only Stupefied and bound them, and the elves took their wands and masks, tagging them for future information.

Molly and Ginny examined the two injured. "This one might have a concussion. I think Madam Pomfrey should check him," Ginny said.

"This is a nasty Cutting hex," Molly whispered while trying to close the big wound on the back of the second Death Eater.

Finally Minister Scrimgeour and Percy Weasley abandoned their place by the walls and walked closer the new arrivals.

"Poirot Parkinson!" The Minister exclaimed in surprise after seeing one of the Stupefied and bound prisoners.

"And I think the one with the concussion is Marcus Flint, a Slytherin who graduated from Hogwarts the same year I did," Percy informed in a low voice.

"I think the big man is Balthazar Bulstrode," Minerva said, still by Hestia's side while Madam Pomfrey took care of her wound.

"The one with the nasty cut is the fugitive Dolohov," one of the Aurors said.

"Anyone recognize the last of this group?" Arthur Weasley asked.

"No… I don't think so," another Auror answered.

"We will have to interrogate all of them anyway," the third Auror stated.

"So…" Arthur stood up and faced the Minister. "That means you are approving of this operation, Minister?"

Scrimgeour made a face, unhappy with the way things had happened that night. But he couldn't deny the great accomplishment this group of 'civilians' had made. Better to stick with the winning side anyway, especially if Potter did manage to kill You-Know-Who.

"Yes, Weasley. After all, a group of Aurors did go to help this operation on Malfoy Manor, didn't they? Let's keep this as a joint operation. Everybody will be happy, and nobody will get in trouble."

"That's good enough for me, Minister," Arthur answered, smiling.

The elves were moving the new prisoners and cleaning up the Hospital wing when another Portkey entered the space. On the floor, in the middle of the room, were Ron, Hermione, and Remus Lupin, all three of them touching Harry Potter's body.

"What happened?" Molly screamed and ran towards the group.

"Harry!" Ginny cried at the same time.

"We found him like that," Hermione answered between hiccups. "We couldn't find any wounds but we couldn't wake him!"

Before anyone could do something, another person was delivered by Portkey. When he recognized his second son, Arthur Weasley ran to him, helping the young man to sit on an empty bed. He was holding a useless arm, his face full of pain.

Molly felt torn between the two young men. Ginny solved her dilemma.

"Go help Charlie, Mum. Harry will need Madam Pomfrey."

The older woman looked back and forth and finally nodded in agreement. She walked toward her second oldest son and started checking his wounds and healing whatever she could.

Madam Pomfrey ended the treatment of Hestia Jones, and Professor McGonagall helped the woman to get more comfortable in the hospital bed.

The Mediwitch looked at the two Death Eaters quickly, just to guarantee they didn't have any life-threatening wounds, and then she went to check Charlie, leaving him at Molly's mercy after identifying his wound.

Ron and Lupin carried Harry to 'his' bed; the bed in the far end of the hospital wing where Harry always stayed when he was injured. A situation so common that their roommate, Seamus Finnegan, used to joke that Harry deserved his own private room in the hospital wing.

Hermione and Ginny walked behind the two men carrying Harry. Hermione tried to clean her tears and Ginny fought to not let any fall.

Harry seemed to be asleep, but his complexion was too pale and his breathing too shallow to give any comfort to his friends.

Madam Pomfrey walked behind Harry's friends. "Do you know what he might have done?" She asked impassively, but anyone who knew the matron could recognize the worry in her voice.

"When we found him, he was out cold," Ron said.

"We tried to wake him up but couldn't," Hermione completed.

"No visible wounds," Lupin contributed.

Madam Pomfrey used her wand to cast a series of diagnostic spells. The tension in the room was rising as each moment passed without information on Harry's condition. Finally the witch lowered her wand and turned to the group crowded at the foot of the bed.

"He is magically exhausted. He has been exposed to the Cruciatus Curse and a few bumps, but nothing more serious. He just needs to rest."

A collective sigh filled the room. Hermione and Ginny quickly summoned a chair each and immediately claimed the sides of Harry's bed. Lupin fell, seated, on a nearby bed, letting his head rest in his hands. Ron hugged his father without shame and let the older man comfort him.

Scrimgeour, Percy and the Aurors finally moved to check the room with the prisoners while the house-elves dealt with the last of the Death Eaters in the hospital wing.

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While Ron, Hermione and Lupin Portkeyed away with Harry, Moody was checking the situation of the Death Eaters in the room. He quickly Stupefied and bound Bellatrix before levitating her towards the other bound Death Eater, Lucius Malfoy.

After helping convince his brother to go back to Hogwarts, Bill and the twins advanced to check the other two Death Eaters in the room.

"These two are definitively dead," Bill attested.

Moody limped toward them. "Nott and Avery," the old Auror recognized.

"Harry made a good use of our products," George commented proudly.

"That boy is dangerous," Moody growled. He made a movement with his wand, encompassing the room. "I don't think I recognize all the spells used here."

"Well, we can try some Priori Incantatem with the wands," Bill said looking around.

"But I think this is more important," Fred said in a low voice near the place Harry was found.

The other three in the room turned to the young man.

"What is it, Fred?" George walked to his brother.

"I think this is what is left of Moldyshorts," Fred said.

Moody and Bill hurried to the place. In front of them was a mummified-like body with a sword embedded in his chest.

"I think this is Gryffindor's sword, the one that used to be in Albus's office," Moody commented.

"The same sword Harry used to kill the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets," George informed.

"I never got the entire tale of that adventure," Bill said.

"Harry doesn't talk about it because Ginny gets upset," Fred told his brother.

The four men kept looking at the body in the floor.

"What we should do?" George asked, uncertain.

"We have to take him -- it? -- with us," Bill answered.

"But first, proof for posterity and the Ministry," Fred said pulling a camera from the knapsack he was carrying.

"Why did you bring a camera?" Bill asked.

"Well, if Harry came to finish off old Snake-Face, I thought that the accomplishment deserved to be preserve for future generations," Fred answered.

"And some hard proof couldn't hurt too," George contributed. "We all know how the Daily Prophet can be… imaginative in its descriptions, or how mule-headed those politicians at the Ministry can be."

"Better safe than sorry," Fred finished, while taking pictures of the state of the room they were in.

When he was finished, Moody conjured a big bag and levitated Voldemort's body into it. Bill took the sword with him.

They prepared the dead and the bound Death Eaters and Portkeyed them to the hospital wing.

"You boys go back to Hogwarts," Moody ordered. "I'll go check to see if the rest of the house is secured." And he started to walk away.

"Hey, we can help!" Fred protested.

"You're civilians! You've done enough. I bet Molly is in stitches, worrying about you. Go now!" And the ex-Auror wobbled out of the room, limping toward the entrance where Flitwick had disappeared earlier.

Bill turned toward his twin brothers. "He's right. There are Aurors around and it would be better if we don't get involved in any other fights."

The other two exchanged an entire conversation in the quick look they shared and nodded in acceptance. Bill produced a Portkey and the three of them touched it, feeling the usual pull taking them away.

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When the last three Weasleys appeared in the hospital wing they were quickly hugged by their parents. Ginny was close behind them.

Bill offered Gryffindor's sword to McGonagall, who took and put it in Madam Pomfrey's office.

The Mediwitch checked the young men, healing minor cuts from their adventure.

They could see the Death Eaters that were Portkeyed before them being dealt with. The dead were taken to a far side of the hospital wing, apparently the first lost in this fight. Malfoy was treated and then pegged with a number, his wand likewise. Bellatrix was a bit more complicated.

Accepting help from Bill, Madam Pomfrey tried to identify the curse Harry had used on her.

"What were you thinking, teaching this kind of spell to a young boy?!" The Mediwitch raged at him.

"I was thinking that Harry would go against a bunch of Death Eaters that wouldn't hold anything back. He needed all the advantages he could get," Bill answered a bit peeved for being chastised.

"Harry isn't a boy anymore," Hermione commented in a low voice. "He probably hasn't been a boy for a long, long time," she completed sadly.

Madam Pomfrey humphed but went on treating Bellatrix Lestrange, announcing in the end that the witch should be sent to St. Mungo's.

"I think she might never really recover from this. It is like having her own Dementor inside her head."

"Not that she was much saner before," Ron said.

Arthur went on to call for an Auror to accompany the witch to the hospital and the room was quiet again.

After the Auror took Bellatrix away and Arthur returned, the Order members sat in a corner of the hospital wing, around a conjured table and a light meal provided by the house-elves.

"How's Harry?" Bill inquired.

"Madam Pomfrey said he suffers from magical exhaustion and that he just needs rest," Ron answered between bites.

"Well, it's finished," Charlie commented, his arm still a bit stiff but not a hindrance to his appetite.

"Yeah…" Several voices sounded a bit lost around the table.

The silence stretched in the room, each person lost in his or her own mind, remembering the last months or dreaming of the future.

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Back at Malfoy Manor, the big group of Aurors and the remaining Order members were finishing taking care of the last resistance they had found on the mansion's second floor.

As soon as Elphias Doge and Sturgis Podmore climbed the stairs at the beginning of the raid, they were confronted by a barrage of spells that had them pinned against a wall without much space to maneuver. The arrival of the Order Aurors Shacklebolt, Tonks, and Towler helped a bit, but it was clear they were badly outnumbered.

Elphias Doge had just been hit by a Killing Curse and Podmore grazed by an Entrail-Expelling Curse when the stairs pounded with the hurried steps of a group of Aurors guided by Amos Diggory.

One Auror activated an emergency Portkey that would take Podmore directly to St. Mungos and the rest of the group advanced toward the room where the Death Eaters were entrenched.

They exploded the door to the room and the group advanced together, some launching spells, others using Shielding charms to protect as many as possible.

The sound of failed pops proved that the anti-Apparition wards were fully functional and now the panic was taking care of the Death Eaters.

The fight inside the room was vicious and quick. At the end, when Shacklebolt and the leading Auror could take the time to check, they found twenty-five Death Eaters. They counted five dead, five seriously wounded and the rest with cuts and scrapes, but nothing life-threatening.

Between the Light forces, they had lost Doge outside the room and another three Aurors during the fierce fight inside. Besides Podmore, they had ten seriously injured that were Portkeyed to St. Mungo's as soon as possible. The rest of the group had several wounds, from broken bones to cuts, to some exposure to the Cruciatus Curse, but all in all, they had fared quite well.

The Aurors sorted through the Death Eaters, preparing them to Portkey to the Ministry holding cells, while the Order members tried to take care of the minor injuries.

Flitwick and Auror Crisswell advanced in the room running. It took them a few seconds to understand what was happening.

"So, we missed the end of it?" Professor Flitwick asked, sounding a little disappointed.

"I'll bet that you had the chance to test your dueling skills, Fillius," Amos Diggory answered the diminutive teacher while taking care of Tonks's cuts, avoiding a direct answer.

"Yes, we engaged five Death Eaters in combat at the entrance of that secret room. After they fell, we left them to Moody," the short man answered.

"I think I pity them," Auror Towler said in a low voice.

"Well, they managed to injure Hestia Jones and Charlie Weasley; so no, I don't pity them," Flitwick said.

"What about Harry?" Tonks asked, still trying to escape Diggory's care.

"They hadn't found him when we left," Flitwick said, starting to walk around the room to offer his assistance.

Shacklebolt put a hand over Tonks's shoulder. "Calm down, Tonks. They will find him and the boy will be ok. He always is."

"Yeah, always is…" Tonks said with her head down. She sighed. "But what if his luck ran out? What we would do? Remus would be devastated. I don't think I could take that too…"

Shacklebolt squeezed her shoulder once more and walked away to help sort out the prisoners and dispatch them to the holding cells. Soon Amos Diggory finished patching Tonks's wounds and walked away as well, going to help the next injured person. The other Aurors also murmured something unintelligible towards the young woman and walked away.

Tonks slouched against the wall behind her, head bowed and lost in thoughts. She stopped paying attention to the movements in the room, letting her worries wash over her.

Some minutes later, she was brought back to reality by a gnarly hand grabbing her shoulder. "Tonks! Snap out of it! The boy is safe! Lupin took him to Hogwarts!" Moody growled into her face.

The young woman jumped at the unexpected contact and information thrown at her. She then immediately tripped over her own feet, slamming hard against the wooden paneling behind her. The wall moved of its own accord, quite like that of a wardrobe door.

Tonks and Moody pulled out their wands, Tonks kicking the false wall open while Moody shot a 'Lumos' spell toward the entrance to show them what they were facing, and to blind whomever might be hidden there.

A shriek and the soft sound of wood hitting the floor alerted the Aurors that they had their prey. When the hidden Death Eater removed his hands from his face, Tonks smirked.

"Well, well, well. Hello, little cousin. Fancy finding you here."

Inside the secret place, Draco Malfoy lowered his hands, showing his pale face. He sneered toward Tonks, trying to return to his superior ways. "This is trespassing! You attacked my house without provocation! The Minister will hear about this outrageous behavior!"

"Save the speech for your trial, little ferret!" Moody growled. "The Death Eater robe and mask are enough to take you in."

"And with all the reports we have of your… activities," Tonks continued, "your trial will be a stroll in the park. For us, that is. For you, it will be a one way ticket to Azkaban," she finished with an even happier smirk.

"You can't do that! I'm a Malfoy!"

"Yeah, the second one to go to Azkaban. Just wait until we get our hands on my loving Aunt Narcissa. It will be a happy family reunion," Tonks answered, kneeling to pick up the young man's wand.

"Come on, junior," Moody said grasping Draco's arm and pulling him out of his hideaway. The young man was bound and Stunned to be transported to the Ministry holding cells.

* * *

TBC… 


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: English is my second language and this chapter didn't pass through a beta.

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**CHAPTER FIVE**

Kingsley Shacklebolt wasn't happy. He would like the chance to check the other Order members and, especially, he would like to know how Harry was and what had happened exactly. But Kingsley was very serious about his job, so he was in the Ministry holding cells, helping to sort out the bunch of Death Eaters that they apprehended in this night's operation.

The Minister himself was there with his assistant and a list of names. The two men were checking the list, confirming if the person was indeed captured and how that happened. All the Aurors that went to Malfoy Manor had already been debriefed. Only the Order members were still waiting to be interviewed.

Professor Flitwick, after helping to bound and transports the captured Death Eaters, took a Portkey back to Hogwarts.

Diggory, Towler, Moody and Tonks were seated in the far corner of the room. Diggory and Towler were completely knackered and they rested against the wall, falling promptly into a light sleep.

Tonks was fidgeting, wriggling her hands, tapping her feet and changing the colour of her hair in an uncontrolled demonstration of her nervousness.

Moody was sitting straight, both hands grapping his cane, his good eye trained on the floor, where a bag lay, and his magic eye rolling in dazzling speed.

Shacklebolt, on his feet, closer to the door, sighed tiredly and started to walk toward his Order companions.

'_No reason to stay by myself, worrying. Let's see if I can find what happened with the others.'_ Kingsley thought while walking and sitting by Moody's side.

The older man turned both his eyes toward the other Auror.

"Curious enough, Shacklebolt?"

"I thought I would be able to go to Hogwarts and find out by myself, but…" He made a gesture toward the Minister and his assistant.

"Yeah! Bureaucrats can really get in the way," Moody growled.

"Come on, Moody!" Tonks stopped her nervous actions. "Tell us what you know!"

"I already told you, Tonks!"

"No! You just said that everything would be ok. What happened under the house? Flitwick said that Hestia and Charlie got hurt. What about the Death Eaters you found?"

"Yes, Moody. Give us some information here," Shacklebolt asked.

Moody sighed. "I'll have to repeat everything for the two morons over there. I prefer to retell this only once."

Tonks jumped to stand up and started to move toward the Minister. Moody smirked but Shacklebolt jumped after her, catching her arm before she reach the middle of the room.

"Calm down, Tonks. Let's not get in more trouble than we need to be."

"But I want to know about Remus and Harry!"

"In a moment, Tonks. They'd want to know what we did. Sit down."

By now Diggory and Towler were awake, watching the exchange with mild interest.

Moody had his unsettling smile on his face and Shacklebolt dragged Tonks back and then pushed her into a chair.

The small disturbance seemed to draw the attention from the two bureaucrats, who finally looked up and stared at the Order members. The Minister let out a sigh and made a discreet signal to his assistant, indicating it was time to talk with the people waiting there.

"Let's try to wrap this up," Percy said in his 'ministry worker' voice.

The five people on the other side of the room didn't answer or comment but the eyebrows shooting up or the twist of mouths transmitted very well the sentiment on all of them.

"We know that Mr. Potter is in a magical coma…" Percy started just to be interrupted by a frantic scream from Tonks.

"Coma?! Oh, my! What happened to him? Moody, why didn't you say something?! I should be with him!"

"Calm down, Tonks!" Again Shacklebolt hold the younger woman by her arm.

"Lupin, that Granger girl and the younger Weasley went back to Hogwarts with him," Moody informed.

"Madam Pomfrey said he would be well after some rest," Percy said calmly.

"If we can resolve this quick, you can go check on the boy," the Minister said.

Tonks spent many seconds taking deep breaths trying to calm herself.

"So, if we may continue," Percy tried again.

"Look, sonny, why don't you just ask what you want to know?" Moody growled. "At least twenty Aurors just gave you their statements. What do you want from us?"

Percy huffed because of the interruption. He tried to appear taller and looked the old Auror in the eyes.

"We need to know what happened prior to the arrival of the Aurors. How this… 'mission' was planned. Who went on it and what was done. We witnessed the arrival of various Death Eaters while in the Hogwarts Hospital Wing. We need details."

Sighs filled the room. The one word that spelled trouble and long, long hours when spoken by a bureaucrat: 'details'.

"Alright, we will give you details. It would probably be best if each one of us recounted what happened. But I think I will start with the end."

With that statement, Moody stood up and grabbed the bag that was at his feet. He walked toward the Minister and his assistant and put the bag over the table. He opened it and displayed what was inside.

"The boy, Potter, did what he planned to do. He finished up old You-Know-Who. This was all we found of him after the others Portkeyed Potter away."

The Order members and the two bureaucrats went to look what was inside the bag on the table. Some sharp intakes and a muffled 'oh!' were heard from the group of the fighters for the Light.

The Minister jumped backward and tripped over his chair, falling on the floor.

Percy Weasley opened his mouth and let out a very high and very girly shriek.

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At Hogwarts Hospital Wing the movement and stress were finally winding down. All the life threaten or severe cases were reverted to St. Mungos and the light wounds were treated.

The only bed currently occupied was exactly the one that had the most use on the last seven years. The bed that Harry Potter called his own. Lying there, once more, was the Boy-Who-Lived, this time in a magical coma. The option to transfer him to St. Mungos was briefly brought up but also quickly shot down. His friends wanted to be close to him and none trusted the security at the hospital. Even if the last operation apprehended around 50 Death Eaters, there were still plenty of Voldemort's followers around to worry about.

Headmistress McGonagall had finally left the Hospital Wing to meet with the teachers that were protecting the school. She felt oblige to pass on all the information she could. Minerva McGonagall knew she would have to deal with a very distressed Hagrid when he found out about Harry's condition, but it was unavoidable.

But a quick and casual encounter with Pomona Sprout permitted the Headmistress to pass on some information and gather the news she wanted without much emotion display. She let the good Hufflepuff Head of House to deal with the other professors and walked to her office.

She got to the room quickly, barely sparing a glance to the gargoyle guarding the staircase. Minerva seated heavily on the chair behind the big desk, closed her eyes and let her head rest against the back of the chair. She tried to control herself through long and calming breaths.

'_It seems that it's finally over. No more You-Know-Who. No more Death Eaters. No more war.'_ The witch thought to herself.

The sound of an owl flying into the office made her open her eyes. She faced a non-descript brown owl offering her its leg with a message attached.

Still functioning in the paranoid mode that had guided all their lives for the last year, Professor McGonagall pointed her wand toward the message and scanned it for harmful spells. When none was indicated, she released the bird of the parchment and opened it to read. The owl flew toward Fawkes old perch, the one Minerva kept telling herself that it was for any visiting owls, but deep inside she knew she liked to believe that the phoenix would come back someday.

One last deep breath and Minerva turned all her attention to the letter in her hands.

_Dear Minerva,_

_A few hours ago the Dark Mark burnt horrible and then faded almost to non-existent. I gather that this meant the Potter __brat__… boy managed to finally do his duty and destroyed the Dark Lord. With the Dark Mark fading to almost nothing, maybe my knowledge would still be needed to identify the Death Eaters that weren't captured. _

_But I will need some reassurance so I can get out of hiding. I don't want to risk going to Azkaban. I've done my duty and paid my dues to the Wizarding Society. I want to live the rest of my life in peace._

_Could you arrange it, Minerva?_

_The owl will wait for your answer. It's the only one that can find me. I am very careful with my safety. Even if I don't like old Moody, the man has some lessons worth learning._

_Severus Snape_

Minerva McGonagall sat on her chair behind her big desk inside the Hogwarts Headmistress office holding the letter she just received absolutely flabbergasted.

'_That… That… That arrogant man! Demanding! Oh! How I want to just send him a resonant no!'_ The witch was lost in her thoughts when Dumbledore's voice sounded from his painting.

"This is the owl I gave Severus when we made that plan to help young Mr. Malfoy."

McGonagall turned her head abruptly toward the painting.

"What?"

"I gave him the owl already spelled to be able to always find him. So if he ever had to go into hiding, he would have a safe way to contact me or the Order." The figure's eyes in the painting twinkled. "You can trust the letter is really from Severus."

"Oh, I never doubted that!" The woman answered with contempt. "The tone is unmistakable his!"

"So, what is the news? Severus knows something about young Harry's mission?"

"We don't need Snape's report on that, Albus." Her patience was severely short right now. "Harry is in the Hospital Wing, in a magical coma!"

"Oh, my." The painted Dumbledore shook his head. "What happened?"

Minerva sniffed and took a deep breath. "Harry destroyed You-Know-Who. He ended it."

Now all the portraits stopped pretending they weren't listening and some cheered at the news. A big smile spread over Dumbledore's face and his eyes went on full twinkle.

"Wonderful! The boy really managed it! Things will be so much better now! And the Death Eaters? They were all caught?"

Minerva breathed in and out carefully, in an exercise to control her temper. Yes, the news was important and quite uplifting but after all the tension, after all the worry, Minerva could only feel relieve and weariness. Maybe happiness would come later.

"Yes, Albus. A great number of Death Eaters were captured. It seems that Harry was able to get four Inner Circle Death Eaters before he destroyed the Dark Lord and his pet snake. Things seemed to be going the right direction, finally."

"So, my lovely lady, why the long face?" That question come from another portrait, it was Headmaster Everard.

"I am too tired to be happy right now, Everard. And I am too worried about Harry's state. And this letter didn't help one bit. Is that enough?"

"No need to get all thorny on us, Madam."

"I apologize," Minerva said tiredly.

"What Severus might have said that put you in such a state, Minerva?" Dumbledore asked.

"He didn't _**say**_ anything, Albus." McGonagall sneered. "He _**demanded**_! He demanded that I made certain that his actions won't have any ill repercussions for him. He wants me to guarantee that he won't be send to Azkaban."

"I don't think that his request is too much."

"It wasn't a request! He demanded! After all he did!"

"All he did was to help us."

"No, it was not, Albus! Don't tell me that he overhead the prophecy and went straight to You-Know-Who to tell it thinking that it would help us!"

"That was one mistake, Minerva. One mistake he paid dearly for. And his actions after that should have cleaned any slate he had."

"Well, Albus, considering the way he always treated Mr. Potter and all Gryffindors, for that matter, or better yet, all non-Slytherins, I don't think his slate is completely clean. And we suffered too much because of your demise to just go and forgive Snape."

"You must, Minerva. Now that the Wizarding world is finally free of Voldemort, we cannot harbour ill feelings anymore."

"Albus," McGonagall took a deep breath and looked directly into the portrait's eyes. "You might be above such petty feelings, but the rest of us, humans, are not. Forgiveness is not something you demand. It must be offered and deserved. And I must say that I don't believe Severus Snape deserves to be forgiven for everything he ever did. And with him _demanding_ it, it will be even more difficult to think about offering it."

"Minerva, you know how his life was always hard. You must understand why he acts the way he does."

"I could try to understand it, Albus, if he offered the same courtesy to others."

Albus' portrait sighed and assumed a disappointed stance.

"My dear Minerva, we must lead by example. How others would know what is right if we don't show them the way?"

Minerva McGonagall gasped in surprise. "I'm not here to lead anyone, Albus! I'm too much of a normal person to be a leader to others! I'm not so forgiving nor am I wise enough to go around dispensing advice and guiding people! I would say that this was your part. And since you're not around anymore to do that, I think you will have to let us, simple mortals, to make our own decisions, right or wrong as they came!"

"But, Minerva…" But Dumbledore's portrait couldn't even finish whatever he was planning to say. McGonagall simply stormed out of the office, walking in a hurry toward the Great Hall where almost everyone from the Order and the Hogwarts staff were congregating.

The clipped steps heard through the Great Hall made the group that was lazing around at the table to turn to the door and wait to see who was arriving in such bad mood.

"Minerva!" Molly Weasley called as soon as the Headmistress entered the room. "Nothing else happened, right? Harry is alright?"

"Mr. Potter is as well as possible, Molly. "Minerva answered. "Poppy believes he will wake up tomorrow."

"So, what put you in such a state, Minerva? Something from the Ministry?" This time it was Professor Flitwick that asked.

"No, Filius. No contact from the Ministry so far."

"Shacklebolt, Tonks, Moody and Amos Diggory are still there," Arthur Weasley informed. "And that young Auror, Towler, I think, too."

"Well, I believe that they are more than capable to deal with Minister Scrimegour," Minerva answered and finally seated at the table, letting out a profound sigh.

"Will you tell us what made you so agitated, Minerva?" Hestia Jones asked.

"I just received a letter…" Minerva looked around the table. "Maybe this is something to be discussed as an Order issue."

"Well, let's take advantage of all the people here and you can tell the gist of it. If the majority thinks this deserves a full meeting, we just have to wait for the ones in the Ministry." Arthur offered.

"I got really upset when I first read this letter. Albus's portrait said that I can trust this is real. And he believes I should oblige the person."

"Who wrote this letter and what's in it?" It was Bill Weasley's turn to ask.

Another deep breath and Minerva McGonagall looked at everyone's face before answer.

"The letter is from Severus Snape and he asks for help to smooth things with the Ministry. He could name Death Eaters not captured in exchange to clear his name."

"What?!" Came various outrages cries.

"The slime git!" Ron shouted.

"Who he thinks he is to ask something like that after everything he's done?!" Another Order member commented.

"He did help us with information," Hermione said.

"Kill killed Dumbledore!" Ginny exclaimed.

"You know that it was a plan and Professor Dumbledore agreed to it. Professor Snape kept informing us after he ran away," Hermione tried again.

"I don't care! He is a git and can't just waltz back as if nothing had happened!" Ron stood up from the table, the top of his ears so red that they disappeared next to his hair.

"Now that You-Know-Who is gone, maybe it's time to try and mend the bridges. Offer a hand to Snape may be a nice beginning," Professor Flitwick said in his high pitched voice.

"Yeah! Harry is in a magical coma after duel and finish off You-Know-Who and a bunch of his minions! We worked our asses of destroying those Horcruxes! And the git will just appear from nowhere and say that everything is ok!" Ron's face was all red at this point.

"Ronald Weasley! Language!" Molly exclaimed.

"We cannot hold grudges, Ron!" Hermione stood up too.

"I CAN! And I can do that very well too!" Ginny shouted.

"SILENCE!" Minerva's voice was amplified. When the discussions around the table stopped and people were seated again, Headmistress McGonagall cancelled the Sonorus charm and addressed the Order members.

"I knew this would cause a major disagreement. Let's wait for the return of Moody and the others and we will have an official Order meeting to discuss this calmly!" She said before anyone could protest.

"Let's try to enjoy a nice meal and a good day," and she seated and started to choose what to eat.

A few heads around the table nodded in agreement, but the younger ones weren't satisfied. The silence continued for some time, but small talk started again and at the end of the meal things had calm down enough to avert new discussions.

Afterwards, the Hogwarts staff went to do their usual activities without the worry or the need of some extra protection for the castle. It was really easy to adapt to a less stressed situation and go back to a carefree life.

Everybody knew that Minister Scrimegour would prefer to hold on the information of the Dark Lord's demise but it was simply impossible to restrain the comments from all the people involved in the Malfoy Manor's invasion. Plus there were all the captured Death Eaters being held at the Ministry cells and a few injured Aurors and dark wizards at St. Mungos.

Between Harry's trip to Malfoy Manor and the end of the battle between Death Eaters and Aurors, it should have been twelve hours. In half a day the life of the Wizarding world had changed dramatically once again. And the rumours were starting to spread.

Minerva McGonagall was back in her office, doing her best to ignore all attempts from Dumbledore's painting to talk to her. She had a lot of papers to go through to prepare to the start of term. They were at the end of July and the letters for the first years were quite tardy.

The witch walked towards the small room with the enchanted Hogwarts enrolling book. She prepared a pile of parchment and initiated the spell that would write the invitation letters and address them to the young eleven year old witches and wizards.

After being sure that everything was working correctly, Minerva went back to her office and stopped surprised. At least a dozen owls were waiting by her desk. Headmistress McGonagall had to shout to make the birds behave and wait for her to take their messages. It seemed that the senders were quite anxious for answers because beside the owls eagerness in deliver their letters, none went away after Minerva collect them.

The witch seated behind her desk and opened the first parchment. After reading it quickly, she went on to the others and the words and tone might even change a bit, but the meaning of all the messages was the same.

The Wizarding world wanted to know if the worst Dark Lord for the last hundred years, the evil wizard that disappeared for thirteen years to come back greater and more terrible than ever, if He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was really, truly and permanently destroyed. The public wanted to know if the Boy-Who-Lived was now the Boy-Who-Conquered.

* * *

TBC… 


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: English is my second language and this chapter didn't pass through a beta.

* * *

**CHAPTER SIX**

"Can't you imagine the turmoil it would cause?" Tonks asked.

"Even so, this is an issue that the full Wizengamot should be aware of." Percy answered primly.

"I think they would appreciate to know about this as a resolved issue," Shacklebolt commented.

"The more, the merrier," Moody chuckled.

"Let's not be hasty," Minister Scrimegour tried to intervene.

"As a member of the Wizengamot," Amos Diggory said, "I think I have a say in this issue."

All the others turned to the older man.

"I believe it would be best if we deal with… it," and he pointed to the bag over the table. "Afterwards we can present the closed situation to the Wizarding world."

"I agree!" Tonks exclaimed immediately.

"But…" Percy tried again.

"No!" Moody didn't seemed entertained anymore. "This discussion was fun and all but the truth is we cannot let any one else close to You-Know-Who's remains. We can't guarantee that all the Death Eaters were caught or even some crazy follower wouldn't try to steal it and try to revive the dark nuisance again."

"Paranoid much?" Auror Towler asked in a very soft voice.

"If more people were paranoid maybe we wouldn't have to fight another dark lord!" Moody shouted.

"I must agree with Mr. Moody on this," Scrimegour said with an effort to keep his calm. "It would be much better if we present this as a closed case."

"Well, then let's do it!" Tonks said with enthusiasm. "I have people to visit, you know?"

"And how, pray tell, we should do this?" Percy asked.

The people around the table exchanged glances. All of them seemed lost.

"Maybe if we talk with the rest of the Order…" Towler offered hesitantly. "You know, more heads to think and so on."

"This would be more people who knew!" Percy complained.

"Ah, Percy," Shacklebolt said. "We are trying to find a way to tell _everybody_, remember?"

The young man caught himself and shook his head as if cleaning his mind. "Yes, of course. I mean…"

"No, that is quite a good idea after all," Moody interrupted Percy. "The Order already knows what happened."

"There are a lot of good minds in it and we can come up with some idea of how to present this to the Wizarding world," Shacklebolt completed.

A few more glances exchanged between the group and some nods all around.

"So, let's go back to Hogwarts and try to sort this out once and for all," Minister Scrimegour said.

All the eyes went back to the bag over the table.

"Merlin's beard!" Moody exclaimed. "I brought it in, I can carry it again!" And he quickly closed the bag, tied it shut and held in one hand, his cane in the other.

Percy opened the door of the room and said something to whoever was at the other side. Then he went back to the group that was waiting by the fireplace and one by one jumped in the green flames and flooed to the Headmistress's office in Hogwarts.

After the seven of them arrived in the office, a house-elf popped in front of the group and bowed low.

"Headmistress is in Great Hall. All guests is in Great Hall," and after deliver his information the small creature disappeared again.

The group exited the office and walked directly to the Great Hall, arriving in time to hear what seemed to be quite a heated argument.

"Why not confirm that Voldy and his Munchers are finished?" A young man's voice asked.

"I believe this is a prerogative of the Minister, Mr. Weasley," the group recognized Headmistress McGonagall's voice.

Not wanting to loose anymore time with endless discussions, Minister Scrimegour stepped inside the hall.

"Quite right, Professor McGonagall," he said. "And we are here to try and decide exactly how we can do that."

"Minister…" Arthur Weasley stood up. "How can we help?"

Looking at the big gathering, Scrimegour winced. He didn't know this conversation should be so public after all.

"Minerva," Moody said, drawing attention to himself. "Maybe this would be best discussed between fewer people and in a more secluded place."

Scrimegour and Percy nodded in agreement immediately. A few smirks were heard around the room, Moody's paranoia being so well known.

"I'm sure it would be for the best, Minerva," the quiet agreement from Shacklebolt put everyone else on edge. _This_ was a serious matter.

Chairs were pushed and feet start moving around. A group left the Great Hall and walked back to the headmistress office. After everyone walked in and find a seat the door was locked and some privacy spells were cast.

The group gathered to discuss how to inform the entire Wizarding world of the ultimate dismissed of the Dark Lord Voldemort consisted in Headmistress Minerva McGonagall, Minister Rufus Scrimegour, Minister Assistant Percy Weasley, ex-auror Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody, Chief-Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt, Wizengamot member Amos Diggory, Head of Misuse Muggle Artefacts Office Arthur Weasley, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley.

Percy checked the group in the room and stared at his youngest brother and his girlfriend.

"I don't think this is a matter for students."

"We are here in behalf of Harry Potter," Hermione answered in a very non-no sense voice and straight face.

"What you mean?" Percy asked surprise.

"He is the one responsible for this meeting," Ron started. "Harry defeat the Dark Idiot and we think his interests must be protect while he isn't here to do so himself."

"What kind of interest Mr. Potter might have with this issue?" The Minister asked a bit miffed.

"The protection of his name and his actions," Hermione answered.

"Yeah," Ron was smirking now. "He wouldn't want to have his name dragged in political issues or risk being 'accused' of something underhand after all."

"This is preposterous"! Percy stood up indignantly.

"Well, considering his – and our – experience with the Ministry, I would say this is quite possible," Hermione said calmly.

"Please, people, let's try and keep our heads here," Shacklebolt interfered.

"But these accusations…"

"There were no accusations, Mr. Weasley," Headmistress McGonagall interrupted the young man. "Miss Granger and young Mr. Weasley just stated their propose for being in this meeting."

"Let's stop with the chit-chat and get into business," Moody growled.

"Quite right," Diggory said. "The idea behind this meeting is to find a way to inform the Wizarding world about the destruction of You-Know-Who without risking that any of his followers try to take his remains away."

"An open visitation is out of question then?" Ron asked.

"Of course it is!" Percy answered.

"I think that would be a bit too much, Ron," Hermione said. "Maybe a few selected people could meet to attest the end of Voldemort."

"Where are his remains anyway?" Arthur asked.

"Good question." Moody comment and put the bag in the middle of the room.

McGonagall gulped nervously and locked her eyes at the bag. "Is it…?" She didn't know what to ask after all.

"Yeah, whatever remains from Lord Moldyvorts is inside this bag," Shacklebolt said.

"Why you keep coming up with these ridiculous names?" Percy asked annoyed.

"Very few people can say Voldemort's name," Hermione answered, ignoring the shudders from the others in the room. "Harry came with the idea of silly names to help people to think about him with less fear."

"It helps," Ron said, staring at the bag.

"Whatever," Percy whispered.

"So, how we will do this?" Arthur asked.

"And how we will keep the hidden Death Eaters away?" Diggory said.

"Well, maybe I have half of the answer here," McGonagall said, showing a letter.

"What is that?" Shacklebolt asked.

"Severus Snape wrote to me offering to name all Death Eaters he knows in exchange for pardon and immunity."

"No way!" Ron exclaimed.

"Mr. Weasley, your opinion is quite well known. Let's discuss this in a more mature way," McGonagall chided her student.

"After all the grease git did you will just look the other way and let him walk free?" Ron's face was getting red.

"He did what he needed to do to help the Light side, Mr. Weasley," came the comment from Dumbledore's portrait.

"Persecute Harry helped the Light side?" Ron snapped.

"He needed to hide his true allegiances," Dumbledore answered.

"He enjoys torture students!" Ron shouted.

"Ron, behave yourself!" Hermione intervened. "I don't think this issue will be easily agreed upon."

"That much is quite clear," Scrimegour said looking around the room. "He really can name the unknown Death Eaters?"

"Yes!" Dumbledore said.

After a moment of silence, Headmistress McGonagall confirmed. "I think he can, Minister."

"Well, this is valuable information. Considering that even Dumbledore can vouch for the man, a pardon might be possible." Scrimegour said. Seeing the rebellious posture of the younger Weasley and the two Aurors, he completed. "But let's make this a very careful binding agreement. He will have to give us valid names and then he will have to make a Wizard Oath about desist to use the Dark Arts ever again."

"That is a good idea, Minister," Diggory said.

"I don't know what Harry will say about this…" Ron said disgruntled

"Well, ask me and we will see," came the answer from the door.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Harry became aware of his surroundings slowly. He didn't move but let his senses identify where and how he was.

The smell of cleanliness all around and the crisp linen where he was laying indicated the Hogwarts Hospital Wing.

His body ached like he had slept too long in the same position and his mind was a bit foggy.

Harry sighed and started to move slowly, trying to bring his body back to action. He wriggled all his fingers, basking at the feeling running from the tip of his fingers through out his arms to his shoulders. Then he moved his toes and legs, and finally he turned his head from side to side, letting his eyes get used to the light given by some torches close to the doors.

No light came through the windows, conveying the information that it should be around supper time or even latter. The silence was complete in the Hospital Wing, making Harry believe that he was alone in the place.

His mind was loosing the fogginess and memories started to rush back in, unsettling the young man.

To be true to himself Harry had to admit that his final confrontation with Voldemort was less dramatic than he expected.

It was immensely drawing and Harry believed he would need quite some time to recuperate his physical and mental health. His magic was coming back already and it should go back to his normal levels in no time.

Taking his attention inward, Harry called to his magic. He hadn't done this before, but he was worried about repercussions from his mental confrontation with Voldemort. Harry needed to be absolutely sure that nothing from the dark wizard remained in his mind to torment him in the future.

Flashes of what happened in the tunnels below Malfoy Manor filled Harry's mind. His plans, the moment he cast the Soul Bounding spell, when he destroyed Nagini. The memories were brightly clear but moved quickly. The final confrontation inside Voldemort's mind played again for Harry, giving him the opportunity to review everything. The Dark Lord had fought hard but was unable to cast something back toward Harry's own mind. The young man breathed relieved that old Moldyvarts hadn't left anything nasty in his awake.

Feeling better already, Harry moved carefully and stood up. Taking time to let his body get used to the position shift, Harry scoop his glasses and his wand from the bedside table and examined the room again. The dying light confirmed the late hour. The Hospital Wing was empty aside for himself. If Madam Pomfrey wasn't hovering nearby, it meant that his condition was good and she wasn't worry. So Harry translated all that to '_I'm free to get out of here'_. And he proceed to do just that, walking swiftly toward the big doors and then to the corridor.

He hesitated near the stairs, in doubt about going down, to the Great Hall, or going up, toward the Gryffindor Tower. Deciding that he missed his friends more than he missed food, Harry started to climb the stairs to the tower.

"Maybe you should stop by the Headmistress office." The softly spoken phrase startled Harry. He turned with his wand draw, ready to confront what ever danger might be there.

Near Headless Nick was floating in the middle of the corridor, smiling but his eyes were serious.

"Hi, Nick," Harry answered while pockting his wand. "What's happening in the Headmistress' office?"

"They are discussing how to tell the Wizarding world that you destroyed He-Who-Should-Not-Be-Named."

"Well, I think they may be capable to take care of that. I want to see my friends."

"Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger are part of this discussion. Likewise the Minister and the Headmistress. You might want to go there, Mr. Potter. Even if you fulfilled the prophecy, there still are responsibilities to go with your actions."

Harry sighed and shook his head. "Why I would believe that destroying Voldemort would finish my part in all this. Alright, I'm going."

And he walked through the corridor, passing the ghost and saluting him with a gesture. He stopped in front of the gargoyle and muttering the same password he used to access the office to talk with Dumbledore's portrait. Professor McGonagall wouldn't have the time to change it.

"Lion's courage."

The statue jumped to the side and the spiralling staircase started to climb up. Harry step on it and let the magic stairs take him to the office's door. He was ready to knock when the discussion about Snape reach his ears. He opened the door carefully to listen better without the others noticing him. When Ron spoke, Harry found the moment to announce his presence.

"I don't know what Harry will say about this…" Ron said disgruntled

"Well, ask me and we will see," Harry said, leaning on the doorframe.

Everybody in the room turned to the door and some gasps were heard when he was recognized. Hermione and Ron jumped out of their chairs and ran to embrace him.

"Harry!" Hermione screamed.

"Mate!" Came from Ron.

Harry entered in a three way hug with his best friends and bask on the feeling that now they were safe. Or as safe as was possible in the Wizarding world.

"Should you be out of the Hospital Wing, Mr. Potter?" Headmistress McGonagall asked.

"I'm fine, Professor. And since Madam Pomfrey left me alone, I thought that she wouldn't mind so much," Harry answered with a lopsided smile.

"I'll tell Poppy about your deductions in relation of her behaviour, Mr. Potter," McGonagall said smiling. "Welcome back. I'm glad that you didn't suffer any permanent impairment from your… adventure."

"Thank you, madam." Harry ran his eyes through the room, paying attention to who were there.

"Minister," Harry greeted the man. "Mr. Weasley. Mr. Diggory. Moody. Kingsley." Harry finished greeting the presents, ignoring Percy Weasley as became the norm between the younger Weasleys. Harry agreed with Ron and his brothers and sister. If the prat hadn't the courage to come up to his parents and apologize then he didn't deserve to be acknowledge as a Weasley.

Everybody in the room greeted him but before anyone else could say much more the Minister started in the subject of his interest.

"Mr. Potter, now that you're awake, maybe you can tell us exactly what happened in Malfoy Manor and how you manage to destroy You-Know-Who."

Harry inclined his head to one side, capturing the eyes of the Minister into his hard emerald ones. Ron and Hermione stayed by his side, angels hovering behind his back.

"Minister Scrimegour, Voldemort is dead and destroyed. Not even now can you say his name?"

"It's not important if the Minister say his name or not. The question here is what you did to destroy him. Did you use the Dark Arts?" Percy asked in clipped tones.

Harry pretended he didn't hear the other man. He kept looking into the older man's eyes. When Scrimegour averted his eyes from Harry, the young man sighed and advanced into the room, going to sit on the small sofa, followed close by Hermione and Ron.

"Come on, Potter! Enough with the suspense! Tell us what you did!" Moody demanded.

Harry sighed once more, intertwined his fingers and started to tell his tale concentrating on the faces of the two Aurors present.

"The conversation at dinner yesterday gave me the idea. Kingsley talked how they only found a secret room at Malfoy Manor and Hermione asked about the possibility of hidden tunnels. If Voldemort was there, he would use some kind of protection that nobody else could dismantle. That's when I thought about Parsel magic."

"Since when you know anything about Parsel magic?" Percy asked dryly.

Harry was ready to ignore him again but the interested faces around him changed his mind.

"This last year I made a lot of research. While Hermione was occupied researching about the Horcruxes, I was looking for anything that would help me in the final confrontation with Voldemort. I started to test using Parseltongue on the normal spells. It worked just fine and nobody else could undo whatever I did. I had to use Parseltongue to end whatever spell I had cast."

"Quite interesting! You never said anything about it when you visit, my boy!" Came the commentary from Dumbledore's portrait.

"I had other things to talk about that I thought were more important, Professor," Harry answered without looking at the picture.

"And about the Dark Arts?" Percy persisted.

"I didn't use any Dark Arts that I know of," Harry answered again without looking toward the one asking. "I mixed a lot of ancient spells that Bill Weasley taught me with things Hermione research this year. And of course I used most of them in Parseltongue."

"Quite an accomplishment, Mr. Potter," McGonagall said. "It would be very interesting to talk with you and Miss Granger in greater details about those spells and all the research you two did."

"Ah, Headmistress, there are so much to tell!" Hermione was getting excited. Ron and Harry looked to each other and rolled their eyes at the same time.

"All well and that, Headmistress, but I think that we need a bit more details here," Scrimegour said at last. "What you did to… finish him?" He still couldn't say the name.

"I used an Egyptian spell to make sure that the last bit of his soul would stay in his body and then I destroyed Nagini, the last Horcrux." Harry continued. "I incapacitated the Dead Dumbs with him while I was under the Disillusionment Charm. I cursed Bellatrix and fought Voldemort. I entered his mind and cast the last spell there. And he was no more." Harry finished and sighed, finally feeling tired.

Hermione took hold of one of his hands and Ron extended his long arm to embrace his girlfriend and his best mate over the back of the couch.

"Sounded to simple," Percy commented.

"It was not simple," Harry answered with hard eyes. "Bellatrix caught me with a _Crucio_ and Voldemort hurt me too. I got luck when I was able to drop two Death Eaters before anyone notice me. Malfoy wasn't much there for the fight. I think the Dementors really shook him. But I think I did have a very good plan and most of it worked fine."

"Why not tell us about what you were going to do, Harry?" Hermione asked softly.

Harry let go of a sad laugh. "You all were thinking about a great big battle. As if two powerful armies would meet in a pre-arranged place and fight like warriors of old. Voldemort didn't play like that, Hermione. He was sneaky. He liked to attack where we least expect. He was a backstabbing bastard. He would never confront us in the open. But nobody would listen to me. Nobody believed me when I said those things before. So instead of risk a big trap and a lot of people hurt, I went after him myself, as I should. As the prophecy said it would be."

"The prophecy never said anything about you being alone, Harry," Dumbledore said.

"We talked about it already, Albus. We agreed in disagree about it."

"What spell did you use?" Percy was acting like this was a trial.

"I didn't know you could cast a spell while you're inside somebody else's mind," Hermione said.

"I would say that Mr. Potter might be the first to try and succeed, Miss Granger." McGonagall commented.

"What spell did you use?" Percy asked again, more forcefully this time.

Harry looked at him for the first time and answered with certainty. "I won't say."

The room filled with silence. Harry was calm and collected. Percy was getting red on the face, a sure sign of an angered Weasley. Diggory, Moody and Shacklebolt were watching the interaction with amused interest. Scrimegour and McGonagall appeared to be calm and neither of them was showing any emotion. Ron removed his arm from behind his friend and leaned forward, an angry expression on his face that was getting red too. Hermione squeezed Harry's hand, offering and asking for reassurance.

"You can't deny the Minister!" Percy complained.

"I didn't. I answered all the Minister's questions so far." Harry answered.

Percy turned to Scrimegour, waiting with an eager expression. The man sighed and turned to Harry.

"Why don't you want to tell which spell you used, Mr. Potter?

"Because it's a very ancient spell, a curse used on convicted criminals. Since it was forgotten, I don't think it should be resurrected now."

"It isn't your decision!" Percy interrupted again.

"What got your knickers in a twist, Perc?" Harry asked with an evil smile. "You're a sad that the Ministry won't get the fame for destroying Voldemort? Or maybe you want the spell so you can use it on me?"

"You are an impertinent boy that doesn't know his own place!" Percy stood up, rage taking over him. "You should kneel and say thanks for all the Ministry has done for you! You are irresponsible and untrustworthy!"

"I'm not the one who betrayed my own family in exchange for a job, Perc," Harry answered in a chilling voice. "I made a lot of mistakes but most of them can be explained by lack of information. The moment I could, I went after my destiny and followed it to the end. I did what I was supposed to do for the Wizarding world. I don't have any other obligation toward it. And I certainly don't have a debt with the Ministry. If you want to discuss mistreatment, let's talk about all the Ministry did against me."

Harry didn't raise his voice but it carried through all the room and chilled all occupants. Percy fell back on the chair, still red-faced but obviously without a answer.

"We should not be fighting. This should be a happy moment. I thought you were here to discuss a way to tell the Wizarding world about the ultimate dismiss of Lord Voldemort," Dumbledore said.

McGonagall and Scrimegour turned toward the picture and both nodded in agreement.

"I think a more… detailed debrief can be made later." Scrimegour said. "Auror Shacklebolt, I leave this duty in your capable hands."

"Yes, sir," Shacklebolt answered automatically but didn't move his eyes away from Percy.

"Well, let's go back to what we were discussing when Mr. Potter arrived," McGonagall tried to dispel the heavy air around the room.

"Yes, we were talking about a pardon for Severus Snape in exchange for names of Death Eaters," Mr. Diggory was also trying to act normally.

"The Minister suggested an oath to keep Snape away from the Dark Arts. But we sure could use this kind of information. Even with all the Death Eaters captured today, Snape was one of the closest to You-Know-Who." Shacklebolt commented.

Harry rolled his eyes, peeved that everybody was still using these silly epithets when talking about Voldemort.

'_They will never change?'_ He thought, hearing the comments around the room.

"What do you think, Harry?" Ron asked but he was still staring at his brother.

"If the Aurors and the Minister believed he has something to contribute, then they should do it." Harry answered half-hearted.

"If we pardoned him, we will have to explain. Tell about him being a spy." Scrimegour said. "Maybe even give him a reward."

"I think that each and everyone that fought against Voldemort should be acknowledged and receive their rightful due. Their past should not be considered here. Their actions speak louder," Harry said.

Dumbledore's portrait seemed to shine with proud. "Well said, my dear boy, well said. Everyone can make mistakes. Very few try to rectify them."

Scrimegour, Percy, McGonagall, Hermione and Diggory nodded in agreement. Kingsley and Moody looked sceptical and Ron was clearly against it.

"Then maybe would be a good idea to assemble the most prominent heroes of this fight for an award presentation," the Minister said. "And you, Potter, together with Snape should pass the right idea."

But Harry was shaking his head. "I'll try to help in whatever way I can, sir, but I will not be side by side with Snape. Not unless you want him dead."

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed.

"But you were just saying that the past should be forgiven and forget…" McGonagall said.

"I said that those who fought against Voldemort deserve to be recognized for their work," Harry clarified. "My problems with Snape are in no way connected with neither our works against Voldemort."

"But, Harry," Dumbledore started from the wall. "If you don't show up with Snape what kind of message this would pass? How the Wizarding world can heal and move forward if their outmost symbol keep holding grudges?"

"I don't care which message they see, old man," Harry answered without looking at the painting. "And I care even less for this _'outmost symbol'_ thing. Snape hates me because I'm James Potter's son and Sirius Black's godson. Something that has nothing to do with Voldemort, Death Eaters, Order of the Phoenix or the Ministry of Magic. So, I don't have to forgive and forget. I won't even discuss the issue that he was the one to pass the first part of the prophecy to Voldemort in the first place. Or that he was the one that _'helped'_ to recruit Pettigrew to the Death Eaters. I can't and I won't forgive him for hating an eleven year old boy that hadn't the faintest idea who was his boyhood nemesis."

Ron nodded in complete agreement. He didn't want to forgive Snape for anything either. The rest of the room felt uncomfortable with the information imparted by Harry and none knew what to say.

"Harry, my boy, one of your strengths is your love and forgiveness for the fellow man," Dumbledore started by was quick cut off by Harry.

"Well, I think I loved and forgave enough, Professor Dumbledore. Certainly there was none for Bellatrix or Voldemort. Nor there is for Snape. Let the Minister prepare his party any way he wants it. Like I said before, I have done my part. I will live my life the way I want now." The young man stood up and walked toward the door.

"I'm tired. I'll go to bed now." He turned to Shacklebolt. "Kingsley, you know where to find me whenever you want to do this debrief thing. Good night to all."

And Harry walked out of the Headmistress office, leaving a group of wizards and witches a bit surprise and at lost of what they could say.

Dumbledore sighed and seated in his armchair, loosing himself in thoughts.

Diggory looked around and finally spoke in a low voice. "We didn't decide anything about how we will tell the Wizarding world about You-Know-Who."

Groans and sighs filled the room.

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TBC… 


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: English is my second language, so I'm doing the best I can, especially because this chapter didn't pass through a beta.

All the standard disclaimers apply, for ownership (not mine!) and the excuses and begging for forgiveness for the delay of this chapter (to all the amazing 14 people that are following this story!! Thank you so much!!!).

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**CHAPTER SEVEN**

_** THE-BOY-WHO-LIVED… TRIUMPHS?**_

_**Rumors coming from the Ministry employees say that Harry Potter, The-Boy-Who-Lived, engineered and accomplished an attack that decimated the Death Eaters' ranks and destroyed You-Know-Who himself for good!**_

_**Since the Death Eaters' raids happened every night in the last couple of months and have been two nights that not a single attack is reported, these rumors get quite truthfulness light.**_

_**Where is the Minister to explain things and calm the worried heart of the English Wizarding society? **_

"This is the closest of a political disaster we have come since Albus Dumbledore's death," young Percy Weasley told the Minister in hushed tones.

"You don't think that somebody from the Order of the Phoenix talked?"

"No, sir. It's not their style. Usually they really like to keep themselves and their actions a secret. There were a very large group of Aurors at Malfoy Manor and a lot of wounded going to St. Mungo's."

"Let's prepare an official statement, Weasley. And a reward ceremony really quickly. Potter doesn't like the press, but we have to use this as much as we can," Scrimgeour said.

"Yes, sir!" Percy ran out of the Minister's office to do whatever was needed to capitalize on the victory over the Dark Lord.

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Harry slept late and chose to go to the kitchens for breakfast, not wanting to meet anyone yet.

He went to bed last night after a hasty good-night to his friends. The discussion in the Headmistress's office left him sour and Harry wanted to try and go to sleep while his body was tired enough to win over any worry that might occupy his mind. In the end, Harry had a calm night and as much rest and sleep he could manage without potions or magic exhaustion.

After a filling meal, Harry went to enjoy the good weather and the sun walking around the grounds. He sat by the lake and let the silence and calm soothe him, letting his mind wander around what he and his friends would do now that the war was over.

Harry, Ron and Hermione lost the NEWTs tests at Hogwarts but Professor McGonagall had promise them that they would be able to do the tests at the Ministry as independent students. They would use the month of July and the first quarter of August to study and prepare and then they would go to the Ministry to take their NEWTs.

Ron and Hermione found Harry lying on the grass by the lake in a light doze, lost in his thoughts and dreams.

"Wake up, lazy bones!" Ron exclaimed, looming over his friend.

Harry opened just one eye and smiled. "Hey, mate."

"We have been looking for you," Hermione started. "The Daily Prophet published a report saying that you destroyed Voldemort and they are asking what the Minister has to say to this."

"And what the Minister has to say?" Harry asked with his eyes still closed.

"Well, the Minister was quite annoyed about the news. I think he wanted to control how this information would be pass on," Hermione answered.

"Ah, everything is the same around the corrupted world of the politicians," Harry commented.

"Harry! This is important! You don't mind that they are using your name?"

Harry opened his eyes, sighed and seated up. "Hermione, whatever was published it was true? Or it was the usual garbage that the Daily Prophet likes to write?"

"They say you destroyed the Death Eaters and Voldymorts all by yourself," Ron said. "But they also said that it was just a rumor coming from the Ministry."

"How a rumor like that would start at the Ministry?" Harry asked surprised.

"Well, we got a lot of help from the Aurors when we went after you at Malfoy Manor," Ron answered.

"And a lot of Death Eaters and Aurors ended up at St. Mungo's." Hermione completed.

"So, someone talked," Harry concluded.

"It is the most probable conclusion," Hermione concurred.

Harry smiled brightly. "So, what I have to worry about?"

Hermione humphed. "You are not taking this seriously."

"Of course not. I finally did what I was supposed to do. For me, the war is over. I don't want to know what the Minister plans to do. I want to prepare and do my NEWTs and then think about what I can do with the rest of my life."

"I don't think it will be this simple, Harry." Hermione said in a low voice, seating beside him.

Ron followed her and spread his big body on the grass. "I'm sorry to say that I have to agree with Hermione, Harry. I don't think people will forget you and what you have done."

"You couldn't even let me dream a little longer?" Harry complained his smile fading and a crease appearing in his forehead.

"I'm really sorry, Harry, but I think you should prepare yourself and not let your guard down. The Minister will ask for your presence in whatever ceremony they devise to acknowledge the victory over Voldemort," Hermione said.

"And the Death Eaters that escaped might want some kind of revenge," Ron said.

"You two definitively aren't fun!" Harry whinnied.

"But we cover you back really well," Ron joked.

Harry lost his playfulness. "That you did, Ron. You two did that very well. I just hoped that you wouldn't need to keep doing that anymore."

"Don't worry, mate. Cover your back doesn't get in the way of the other things I want to do," Ron answered grinning.

"We wanted to go with you, Harry. Don't start to feel guilty about anything!" Hermione interfered.

"But I still can bash your head in for going after Moldyshorts without us, mate," Ron said, his smiling getting evil.

"I thought you would cover my back not help everyone who wants me dead."

"No worries mate. I'm sure the twins have something that will satisfy my thirsty of revenge from you."

Harry laughed. "Anything but a Wheezy!"

The trio laughed it out, basking at the sun and the calmness of the moment.

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Hermione, Ron and Harry only went back to the castle for lunch. They walked slowly, complying with the hunger that drove them but without any real desire to face what might be waiting.

They finally entered the Great Hall to find all the professors and most of the Order of the Phoenix seated there. The trio arrival brought silence to the room and everyone turned to watch them entering.

Ron's face reddened immediately and Hermione also could feel her cheeks warming up, a sure sign of discomfort and awkwardness. Harry stopped by the big doors and ran his eyes over all presents.

"So, what happened now?" He asked tired. Something must have happened. Because something was always happening to him whenever he thought things were calmer or better in his life.

There were some feet shuffling and some awkward glances exchanged. Finally Professor McGonagall sighed and stood up to look at Harry.

"The Minister was a bit nervous after the Daily Prophet, Mr. Potter," she kept her eyes on the young man's face. "He wants to have a ceremony tomorrow at the Ministry."

"What kind of ceremony?" Harry asked dispassionately.

"An award ceremony mixed with celebration for what I understood."

"I don't want any award. And the only celebration I'm interest in wouldn't go well with Scrimgeour."

"Harry…" Professor McGonagall started but was interrupted by Remus Lupin.

"I'm sorry, Harry, but I think you will have to do this. It's better to stay on the Ministry good side. Let the man have this moment of glory and then you'll be able to do whatever you want."

Harry lowered his head and sighed quite loudly. "But it's not that simple, isn't? When the Ministry will think it's ok to let me be? Or they will always want me to be at their beck and call?"

More of that awkward silence was all the answered Harry needed.

"I don't think I'm hungry anymore," and he turned around to leave the Great Hall.

"Harry…" Hermione tried to call him back but was interrupted by Ron's hand on her arm.

"Let him be, Hermione. He's right. It feels like they never will let him alone." Ron pulled his girlfriend inside his embrace.

"Oh! Why Harry can't have whatever he wants and deserves?" She asked sadly.

"Because he is The-Boy-Who-Lived and he destroyed the worst dark lord in memory," Lupin answered quietly. "People need him to be their hero, their symbol. Harry became what Dumbledore was. The light that the Wizarding world follows."

"I don't think he wants that." Ron said subdued.

"Albus didn't want it at first," Minerva McGonagall informed. "But after sometime having to fulfill the role, he got used to it. I believe he even started to like it "

"Well, Harry is quite different from Professor Dumbledore," Hermione said from inside Ron's arms. "He wants a life like everybody else. He doesn't like to be single out."

"He learnt early on that we rarely get what we want. Maybe we can help him get used to what are expected from him," Lupin offered.

"For as long as we are friends, we have been trying to help him cope," Hermione said. "I just don't know how much more we can do."

"Or how much more he can take," Ron completed.

The group went back to their meal subdued, uncertain of what would happen to the young man all of them like and admired.

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Harry didn't turn to check who was entering Gryffindor Common Room. He just stayed on the couch.

A small and delicate hand touched his shoulder and squeezed it lovingly.

"It's not fair that you should be so sad now, after all you did…"

Harry sighed, "My life is never fair…"

"I hoped that after this last year, all this would change…"

"I had hoped for that too, Ginny."

"We can help you get that, Harry, I can help you!" Ginny said with emotion, sitting by his side and taking hold of his hand.

Harry sighed deeply once more and squeezed Ginny's hand in answer to her offer and her gesture.

"I don't know if it is possible, Ginny," he turned to look at her. "And how come you are here? Nobody else wanted to come and _'show their support'_ or whatever they called it?"

"I escaped the Great Hall without being noticed. They were talking about what the Wizarding World expects of you and how you will cope with these expectations."

"Ah, nothing new then. Just people talking about me and my life behind my back and even making decisions for me," Harry said surly.

"Don't be a prat, Potter! Everybody down there loves you and wants to help!" Ginny slapped Harry's arm without much force.

"Yeah…" Harry couldn't escape the sadness swooping over him.

"Harry, you have to choose how you'll go on. Are you going to sulk all the time? Too much like your fifth year."

"Yeah…" Harry turned to Ginny. "I don't want to go back to that…"

"So, stand up! Take this sad look from your face! And if you have some problem with the Ministry or whatever, go deal with it!"

Harry sighed. "Easy for you to say. But everybody just seems to wait for me to continue to be their hero, their saviour. I thought that it would end…"

"So, you're wrong! Don't cry about it! Do something so things start going your way, for a change!"

"I thought you came here to help me, not to shout at me," Harry whinnied.

"I want to help, Harry. But if you just sit there whining and feeling sorry for yourself, nothing that I say or do will help. Nothing any of us do will help. The only one that can do something about this situation is you." Ginny said, still a bit picked. Her patience was not one of her best assets.

"Again, only I can resolve this."

"Well, it's your life, Harry. You said that you didn't want anyone else making decisions on your behalf. So, you have to do something."

"Yeah," Harry stood up and faced the red-haired girl. "Let's do it."

"Let's do what?"

"Let's do something. I'll find out what the Minister wants about this whole Voldemort thing and I'll decide how much I want to be part of it."

"Well, you already know that they want Snape at the stage and you at his side, smiling." Ginny said with a malicious smile.

"Well, Miss Weasley, that is something that I can assure you won't happen. Nobody seemed to take me serious on that one. Maybe finishing old Voldy off without witness wasn't such a good thing after all. I'll have to prove to the Minister and the public that I'll not be manoeuvred around." And Harry walked out of Gryffindor common room with Ginny hot at his heels.

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The Great Hall was still full of people. The lunch was finished but the discussion seemed winded enough to go on forever.

"Harry is right! If he is such a hero for the Ministry, he shouldn't have to put up with the likes of Snape!" Ron exclaimed, his red face a testament of how upset he was as much how long he must have been discussion this issue.

"But, Ron," Hermione was in her "explanation" mode. Meaning she already said the same thing at least three times already. She would be able to go on, repeating the same argument for some time yet but her patience was wearing thin. "The Minister Scrimegour wants to award all that fought against Voldemort. This will show the public that it's time to move on and change their attitudes. If we show any kind of grudge how it will be possible to defend a better future without prejudice, away from the Death Eaters believes?"

"We are not discussion purity of blood or this kind of prejudice, Hermione." Remus stated. "Harry said that his problem with Snape has to do with how the man treated him because of his own past."

"But nobody will understand! Or see it this way!" Hermione responded.

"Well, we say that…" Fred started.

"…this is their problem." George continued.

"We agree with Harry on this."

"Snape is a git,"

"and this has nothing to do with him being a Death Eater,"

"or even a spy."

"He was a git because he likes to be!" The twins finished together.

"I couldn't agree more," Harry's voice came from the vicinity of the doors of the Great Hall.

The entire group turned to watch the young man enter the room. Some comments started around the room but Harry walked directly to the main group in this discussion.

Professor McGonagall, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Lupin, Shacklebolt and Moody were surrounded by the Weasleys boys, Hermione and Tonks. The opinions seemed to be quite divided, if you go by the upset faces of the group.

"Harry, dear," Mrs. Weasley started. "We understand your reluctance, but that might really help with the future of our society. People must follow a bright example and after Albus…" She didn't finish, already knowing how much Harry detested been seen as the Headmaster substitute in the role of leader of the Light.

"I agree, Mrs. Weasley," Harry didn't quite finish his statement before Ron and the twins exclaimed in outrageous "What?!"

"Mate, you don't mean it!" Ron begged.

"You didn't let me finish, Ron," Harry said.

Now the Great Hall was in deep silence, waiting for Harry comment, knowing that it would be the first step of the new journey the young man would start. And everybody in the room was quite ready to follow him into this path.

"I agree that there is need of a better example for the Wizarding world. And I'm starting to accept that maybe I will have to be this example."

Headmistress McGonagall and Mrs. Weasley smiled at that declaration. They knew the boy had his heart in the right place and wouldn't disappoint them.

"But if I'll be the new light to guide the Wizarding world, them I'll light up the road I want to follow. I'll not act like Dumbledore and make decisions for other people's lives. I'll do what is right for me and I'll behave as I think I should. That means I won't be a bloody saint!"

Tonks, Ginny, Ron and the twins cheered at the last statement.

Harry let a lopsided smile appear and continued: "I will go to this award ceremony. And I'll accept whatever the Minister wants me to accept but I won't be buddy-buddy with anyone I think doesn't deserve it. And that definitively includes Snape!"

Another cheer filled the room, followed by some clapping.

"If the Minister doesn't want a scene in the stage during his nicely arrange party, he better keep that git far away from me!" And with that, Harry turned around and went to the kitchen, followed quickly by Ron, Hermione, the twins, Ginny and Tonks.

"Well, I think it's better that I warn the Minister. I don't want to hear any complains about them not knowing Harry's opinions on the matter," Mr. Weasley said and went of the room to walk out of Hogwarts until he could Apparate.

"Oh, my! I don't think this will work that well," Professor Flitwick comment.

"At first I thought about skipping this whole mess, but I think young Potter will give us an entertainment no one will forget for a long time! You better arrange for the best front line seats, Weasley!" Moody screamed after Arthur.

"You should not encourage this, Alastor!" Molly complained.

"I didn't say anything! The boy decided all on his own!" The ex-Auror defended himself.

"I don't think that there is much we can do, Molly," Remus interjected. "Harry seemed completely decided about this. And I, for one, don't blame him." Lupin completed and walked out of the Great Hall, going toward the kitchen.

"You know what?" Bill Weasley said. "I think this will be bloody brilliant. I want a front seat too!"

"Language, Bill!" Mrs. Weasley and Fleur said at the same time.

"Why worry, Molly?" Professor McGonagall said with a straight face. "I think the language will be the least of our worries during this award ceremony."

And the silence descended again into the Great Hall.

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A/N 2: I'm not very satisfied with the chapter but I couldn't let the year end without an update. I hope you read it with all the open heart the holiday season brings and feel generous enough to leave a review!

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TBC… 


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: English is my second language and this chapter didn't pass through a beta.

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**CHAPTER EIGHT**

"This wasn't supposed to be _'by invitation only''_?" Hermione asked while Ron, Harry and her tried to walk through the packed atrium of the Ministry of Magic.

"They only forgot to tell us that they used every last owl on England to send invitations to the entire Wizarding society," Ron answered with an annoyed tone, shoving an eager and shorter wizard out of their way.

The big group, formed by the members of the Order of the Phoenix, Hogwarts's staff, the Weasleys, plus Hermione and Harry kept walking, following the crowd toward the elevators and then the stairs so they could get to Level 10 of the Ministry and Courtroom 10, the biggest room the Ministry had and the one adapted for the awards ceremony. The sitting area was magically expanded and the centre of the room lost the prisoner's chair to receive a small stage where, probably, the awards and honours should be given away.

"We should have reserved seats right in front," Arthur guided the group forward.

"It was nice of Minister Scrimegour to do this," Hermione commented.

"He wants this to be wellremembered," Arthur informed. "After all, it's what he has to show when running for re-election."

"I'm counting on this to be one of my best memories too," said Harry smirking.

"Harry, not to put a damper on your enthusiasm, but… you will behave, right?"

"Behave?" Harry asked with a mischief grin. "What do you mean by _'behave'_, Remus?"

"You know what I mean, Harry. You won't do anything to anger the Minister, will you? You are already one of his least favourite persons. Don't make it worse."

"What can be worse, Remus?"

"I don't know! I don't want to know! I just want things to go smoothly and nothing else happening to you."

"Thanks for the kind thoughts but you realise that this isn't possible, right? I'm really getting used to things happening to me, even with all my efforts against it."

"You shouldn't have to get used to it, Harry," Hermione said sadly.

"I think we already discussed this, Hermione," Harry turned to face his friend. "We agreed that this is not a question of choice. So, I've accepted it and I'm learning to deal with whatever flies in my direction."

"Enough of this chit-chat! Let it go, Remus. The kid will do whatever he wants and you know it," Moody said with a smirk of his own.

"And we will be there to watch his back," Ron said. "As always," he smiled.

"Please, Harry, no more comments like this. I do want to live to see what you've planned," Remus said, one hand over his heart.

The group around him laughed at the theatrics but moved along to find their places and be seated.

It took some time to accommodate the crowd. Everybody was getting a bit bored by the long wait and one of the twins pulled out a deck of cards from a hidden pocket.

"Any one interested in a game of Exploding Snap?"

Molly slapped him over the head while Remus confiscated the card deck with a murmured "Later" to the mischief-maker.

"Fred Weasley! What are you thinking?" she complained indignantly.

Fred massaged the place where he'd been smacked. "I was only trying to pass the time, mum. This is really boring."

"And I'll starve before this ceremony even begins!" Ron contributed.

Between laughs and outrageous cries from all in the group, an amplified voice was heard calling for attention.

"Wizards and witches of England, the Minister of Magic, Mr. Rufus Scrimegour!"

Ron made a face because of the over the top announcement made by his stray brother, Percy. Applause filled the room, while the Minister walked to climb on the stage. The front rows of seats, filled with Order of the Phoenix members and Hogwarts's staff, clapped politely but without enthusiasm.

"We are here today to celebrate the end of dark times and to honour those who fought alongside the Ministry to make this day possible," Scrimegour started.

"Alongside!?" commented George Weasley in a not so low voice. "Try more like alone."

Percy shot a repressive glare toward his brother and the Minister took a deep breath, pretending he hadn't heard the comment.

"There are the Aurors, risking their lives to make sure the Wizarding society would be protected," Scrimegour continued. Applause was heard all around and a line of Aurors entered the room and arranged themselves around the stage with the politician.

"There are the concerning wizards and witches that took to themselves the role of protectors," and the Minister gestured toward the Order of the Phoenix members. The group stood up and bowed toward the Minister and the rest of the audience.

"There will be honours and register of all the efforts of these good wizards and witches, but some of them went beyond of what might have been expected and helped in a more profound way in these dark times."

The line of Aurors moved away from the stage and went to find some place to seat and watch the rest of the ceremony.

Harry started to squirm, getting nervous about the situation despite all his previous bravado.

"So, first I would like to call Miss Hermione Granger and Mr. Ronald Weasley, two young people that put loyalty to their friend and the Wizarding society over all else and risked their lives again and again in the pursuit of the destruction of You-Know-Who!" Scrimegour announced, gesturing toward Ron and Hermione.

The couple stood up and bowed to the applause that filled the room. They walked toward the stage, Hermione holding Ron's hand in a death grip. The young man was getting really red-faced, rivalling with his Weasley hair.

They climbed the three steps and stopped in the middle of the stage, near the Minister.

"Here I present you two with the honour of the Order of Merlin, second class," Scrimegour said, picking up the pendant from Percy's hand and downing it first over Hermione's head and then over Ron's.

Percy kept his stoic face, not even smiling. Ron and Hermione accepted the award, bowed to the Minister and turned to acknowledge the public around them.

More applause followed, with the Weasleys making the most noise. But the Order of the Phoenix members and the Hogwarts's staff were not far behind.

After the uproar died a little, Scrimegour shook their hands and the young couple got down from the stage, going back to their seats, still with red faces.

"I was hoping for a speech, Hermione," Harry complained in mockery.

"I… well… Nobody… I didn't…" the girl wasn't able to answer.

"Just get over there when it's your time, mate, and then tell me you didn't get nervous and tied lip," Ron answered, hugging his shaky girlfriend.

"I was joking, Hermione," Harry said smiling and grasped her hand in a silent apology.

"You!" Hermione recovered enough to smack Harry's arm.

The trio laughed and turned back to the stage after a annoyed "shush" from Mrs. Weasley.

"And he risked his life time and time again to help the Light side. So we call Professor Severus Snape to receive the Order of Merlin first class!" Minister Scrimegour finished his presentation and turned to applaud while Snape walked toward the stage with his usual sneer in place.

The dark man climbed the steps leisurely and approached the Minister. Scrimegour had a politician smile in place and presented the Potions Master with his award. The man gave a curt bow, almost insulting, and turned to leave. But the Minister put a hand in his arm, holding him in place.

"Please, wait, Professor. I would like to call the other recipient of the Order of Merlin first class and have the two biggest Wizarding heroes here together."

Snape froze in place and his sneer became more pronounced.

Harry stiffed in his seat and Ron let escape: "He wouldn't!"

"Let's welcome the Boy-Who-Lived, the Young-Man-Who-Won, the one to vanquish the dark lord, Mr. Harry Potter!" Scrimegour announced as if this was a Quidditch match.

"He did!" Ron exclaimed.

"Harry, my dear, please…" Mrs. Weasley said.

The rest of their group turned to look at the pale face of Harry, while the rest of the public applauded with enthusiasm.

Harry stayed in his seat, stiff and fighting to control his anger. He had warned them about this. He said he wouldn't accept to be side by side with the Potions Master. But, as always, the politician just ignored whatever he said and just went on to do what he wanted.

Harry felt Hermione's hand grasp his own and turned to look at his friend.

"Please, Harry…" she asked.

Remus put a hand over his shoulder and squeezed it to show his support.

"Mr. Potter?" The Minister Scrimegour called again.

Snape looked at the young man and let his sneer climb another notch. His posture was a clear challenge.

Harry took a deep breath, squeezed Hermione's hand in thanks and smiled back to Remus.

He walked calmly toward the stage but made certain to climb on the other side of it, avoiding passing by the Potions Master.

Harry stopped in front of the Minister and accepted the award that the man downed over his head on his neck. The medallion of the Order of Merlin First Class shined brilliantly when Harry turned to bow to his friends, the Weasleys and the Order of Phoenix.

Again, when Harry tried to leave the stage, the Minister held him by the arm.

"Not so quickly, young man. I think that some words should be said by our heroes. Please, Professor Snape," Scrimegour gave the Potions Master a short push to guide him to the front of the stage.

Snape's frown deeped and he sneered again but wouldn't let the opportunity pass him by.

"Finally all my efforts and tireless work have been recognized. I expect that from now on _**real**_ wizards may be called forward to deal with any problem that might arise," Snape said, letting completely clear what he meant when he shot Harry Potter a glance during the _'real wizard'_ part of his speech.

Scrimegour smiled thinly, seeing the potential for problem in the Potions Master words.

Ron almost jumped out of his seat, his face redder by anger than when he'd been embarrassed. Hermione took hold of his boyfriend arm to held him in place.

Remus let go a deep growl, upsetting some people nearby. The Weasleys brothers all frowned deeply, shooting murderous looks toward the man on the stage.

Almost everybody inside the room was able to feel the bad blood flowing between the two condecorated wizards. Not one to let chance pass her by, Rita Skeeter jumped in front of the stage with her sickly green quill and notebook floating by her side, bobbing around, as if they were as excited as Rita herself.

"Hello, Harry! Any comment on Professor Snape's words?"

Percy Weasley walked around the stage from his place guarding the Minister's back toward the annoying reporter.

"There will be a press meeting…"

"As a matter of fact I do have some comments and an opinion, Rita," Harry interrupted the Minister's aide.

Scrimegour groaned, being able to imagine how the entire situation could go downhill really quickly.

Ron let go of a loud laugh and Hermione pressed her lips together the same way Headmistress MacGonagal was doing, but it was a bit difficult to say if they were doing it because they were upset or if they were trying to hold on the laughter.

Most of the Order of the Phoenix and the Hogwarts's staff relaxed in their seats, ready for the show. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley felt divided between let things just run along or try to intervene. Remus just shook his shoulders, accepting that whatever Harry had planned, he would go through with it, regardless the consequences.

"So, Harry, what are your comments?" Rita asked again, a malicious glee in her eyes and her voice.

"Well, first, I agree that only _**real**_ wizards should be called forth to help in the direst time of need," Harry started and stop to let the surprise gasp that took almost the entire room to die out. "But, at the same time, that would left out around 2/3 of the wizards and witches here, so maybe we should re-think that idea."

Snape straighten out his torso, getting to his full height while shooting murderous glares toward the younger man.

"Maybe the better course would be more alongside the lines of giving the wizards and witches in general a sense of security and purpose, so we don't have to relay on lonely heroes to help out," Harry continued, his eyes lost at the distance, as if he was sorting through his ideas while talking.

Scrimegour let a more relaxed smile take place in his face_. 'Maybe this won't be so bad,'_ he thought.

"I strongly believe that the Ministry should do something to prevent another dark lord to rise," Harry said looking straight to Skeeter now.

"Then they could start watching out for you, Potter," Snape sneered loudly, back to his pose of challenge.

Harry turned to look at the man and answered looking directly in his eyes? "After everything I went through to destroy one dark lord, I sincerely think that the chances of me turning dark are pretty much the same of you becoming a nice person, Snape. So, they would be around one in a zillion, so I say no one have to worry about neither of that happening."

The laughter filled the room, loud and uncontrolled. Snape went even paler than his natural vampire like skin and took two steps towards the younger man.

Minister Scrimegour quickly got in the way, fighting valiantly to hold his own laughter.

"But Professor Snape taught for so long at Hogwarts…" Rita started.

"And we all know how well this went, right?" Harry interrupted.

This time it took the Minister and Percy to hold Snape from jump over Harry.

"Everyone knows how much Snape hated to be a teacher. He always loathed to mingle with children. He made several generations of wizards and witches to give up any profession that would require knowledge of Potions. We lack Potions Master, Aurors and Healers because Severus Snape chose to torment dozens of children not sorted in Slytherin. We lost good people because of his behaviour. We even lost a great Headmaster," Harry said again looking at Snape.

"Mister Potter!" The Minister exclaimed. "Everyone here being awarded had to do things that they didn't like but were necessary to take the Wizarding society into the road to victory."

"Says the man who put Stan Shupike in prison," Harry answered in a low voice.

The Minister bristled at the comment and Percy turned toward Harry, forgetting to continue to hold the Potions Master. Snape smirked, thinking that Harry would be in a load of trouble now.

But Rita wasn't ready to dose out the flames. "What you propose for the Wizarding world, Harry? What do you think Professor Snape should do now?"

Harry turned back to the reporter. "Now he has the opportunity to dedicate himself to his true calling – research of obscure and obnoxious potions. Let him stay in his dark and dank lab, cocooning nasty new potions to offer to the Wizarding world."

Then he looked straight toward Headmistress MacGonagal. "I believe that, more than ever, Hogwarts needs to be a friendly, welcoming and warm environment to nurture the next generation of wizards and witches in a more generous and harmonic relationship. Let's bury the violent and hateful houses rivalry and let's build a more complete generation of magical people. More honourable and courageous, more hard working and loyal, more intelligent and studious, and more ambitions. Without so much discrimination or too open to be pick up by a greasy git with a prejudiced speech. Do not let another gullible generation step out of Hogwarts to fall at the hands of some sneaky politician with delusions of grandeur. All houses' characteristics have their uses; we just need to learn to appreciate each one."

The silence filled the room as much as the laughter and the applause had done early.

Hermione let out a sob and started to clap. Soon the Weasleys, Remus and the rest of the Order were at their feet also clapping. Quickly the rest of the public followed suit.

Rufus Scrimegour was fighting to conceal his anger. This was one of the best political speeches anyone could make at the moment and the brat had done it instead of him, the Minister of Magic!

Percy felt divided. He really liked what he heard from Potter but he still felt his loyalty should go to the established Ministry and not to a young man, almost a boy without the proper respect toward authority.

Snape was paler still and could almost feel some steam coming out of his ears. It was worse than a Pepper Up potion. He had planned how he would behave, what he would say, he had planned everything to be able to go back to Hogwarts and continue to mould the young minds of his Slytherins. He truly hated to teach but if this was the price to control generations of powerful, rich and respected witches and wizards, he would pay it. And now the brat was blowing up his chances to do it!

Rita was smiling her vicious smile. This was good! A real speech from The-Boy-Who-Lived, his very first one and it was a masterpiece! She needed to get him to give her another interview, one she could write on her unique style.

Harry bowed his head in acknowledgment of the applause and moved to get out of the stage. He really hadn't planed it. He'd just risen to Snape's challenge. But before he could climb down the steps, Rita threw another question, loud enough to shut up the clapping and bring back the attention to the talk.

"Would you be up front this movement, Harry? Guiding the Wizarding world to an era of peace and prosperity?"

Harry jumped at the question and was quick to squash the speculation. "I am not a politician, Rita, or I am ready to guide anyone anywhere. I'm planning to study to take my NEWTs at the end of the summer and then I'll try to figure out what to do with the rest of my life."

"You could become an Auror!" A voice sounded in the room.

"He would be an excellent teacher," came a shout nearby and Harry had the chance to recognize Susan Bones seated a few rows behind the Weasleys.

"He could become the next Minister of Magic," Ron shouted happily.

"He could go to Azkaban and be reacquainted with the Dementors, leaving the rest of us to live in peace," came the angry remark from Snape.

Again the silence took the room, with the only noise audible being Rita's Quick Notes quill writing maniacally, while she observed the dispute as it was a game of throw between friendly Chasers.

Harry turned to look again at the Potions Master. "Well, Snape, I have a great respect for my soul and I want to keep it as it is. But maybe you should think about a… vacation around the Dementors since you don't have a soul to worry about."

"Gentlemen, gentlemen…" Percy was trying to keep the verbal sparring to escalate.

"Maybe we should pass to the photos now!" Scrimegour exclaimed, trying to defuse the situation.

Ron and Hermione stood up and walked toward the stage. Ron smiling and with a happy glint in his eyes, Hermione with a torn expression, completely divided between the good feeling of satisfaction about the Potions Master dress down and her innate belief about respect toward authority.

The official Ministry photographer approached the stage, followed quickly by any other representative of the Wizarding press.

Harry took a step back and waited for his friends to join him. Percy took a deep breath and rearranged his robes, trying to go back to his duties. The Minister turned to Snape and called him up front to face the horde of photographic machines.

"One step ahead, Mr. Potter," a young man shouted. "Let's have a photo with the Ministry and the two honoured with the Order of Merlin First Class!"

"No," Harry stated.

Again silence went through the public and the front rows were able to hear Percy's sigh. "What now?!"

"I warned the Minister when he arranged this ceremony. I won't be anywhere nearer of the greasy git than this." Then Harry seemed to remember something. "Unless I can curse him, of course!"

"No cursing!" came Mrs. Weasley shout.

"Mr. Potter, this seems a bit…" started the Minister just to be interrupted by Percy's body jarring him when Snape pushed the young man from his path. The Potions Master advanced with his wand at the ready and a murderous look in his face.

"As if a brat with such an inflated ego could come near enough to curse me!"

Harry stayed relaxed without any sign of his own wand. Ron and Hermione moved to flank him, one in each side. They held their wands loosely pointed at the floor, but the people closer to the stage could see their readiness.

"Snape, Snape," Harry shook his head as if he was saddened by what he perceived on the other man's attitude. "Getting senile already? A bit young, don't you think? Maybe all the fumes from your obnoxious potions finally got to your brain. Not that I believe that there was much to start with."

"How dare!" The man choked in outrage.

"The only brat with inflated ego I know is Draco Malfoy and he is loosing air as we speak in a Ministry holding cell, from what I've heard. You are a greasy git with an inflated ego, but that is a bit different. I'm a man that fought really hard to survive whatever you and your Death Eaters friends threw in my direction. And now, more than ever, I don't have, and I won't, gulp down anything you throw at me. I'll defend myself, differently from the past when that was forbidden to me. So put your slivering snake tongue back into your mouth and enjoy what you have because I just know you will make a mistake soon enough and your fame and your honours will be ripped away from you."

"Argh!" It was the only answered from Snape before he threw a silent curse toward Harry.

Percy put himself in front of the Minister but they were already out of the line of fire.

Ron and Hermione raised their wands but before they could utter a shield or a counter-curse, Harry lifted his empty left hand in front of them and a shield jump into view.

Snape's curse rebounded at the shield and came back to him. The man threw himself on the floor to escape it.

And Auror created a shield that dispersed the curse toward the ceiling while others jumped on the stage and took hold of Snape, pulling him from the floor and confiscating his wand.

Beside the silence, now the room was filled with a nervous tension, and nobody seemed able to move.

"For one with such a venomous tongue, Snivellus," Harry's voice dripped sarcasm. "You should be prepared to hear what you don't like when you keep saying whatever you want."

Snape didn't fight the Aurors holding him but it was sure a case of _'if looks could kill',_ considering the murderous glance he was shooting the younger man.

Minister Scrimegour was the first to recover, and then he shoved Percy out of his away. After such display in front of the public, he couldn't let the man simply go.

"Mister Snape! Your behaviour was inexcusable!"

"What about that insufferable brat over there?"

"He is right, Snape. If you can say what you want, you should be prepared to hear what you don't like," one of the Aurors said.

"That's enough!" Scrimegour interfered. "That was supposed to be a happy event, a moment to share and cheer our victory!"

"Well, Minister, I did warn you about putting me in the same space as the git over there," Harry said.

"I think we can reach an understanding here," came the voice of Headmistress McGonagall. She stood up from her seat and walked calmly toward the stage. A stern look and Percy ran to help her climb the stairs.

"What Mister Snape did during the war is undisputable." McGonagall said.

Snape held himself straighter and shook off the Aurors holding him at that comment.

Ron snorted but felt silent after an elbow in the side by Hermione. Harry kept his calm face, not moving or showing his opinion on the matter.

"But it's also clear that he isn't in any emotional condition to go back to teach at Hogwarts," McGonagall continued.

"What!?" The Potions Master snapped.

"If you can't control yourself when a less than favourable comment is made, how will you behave around children and teenagers and their dislike?" The Headmistress asked.

"I can behave accordingly," Snape answered.

"Accordingly to what?" Harry asked.

"It's not your damned business, Potter! You won't be there!"

"That's what worries me more," Harry kept his calm face.

"Considering the high emotional state demonstrated in here," McGonagall turned to the Minister." I would suggest that Mister Snape keep his Potions work and research and we hire someone else for the Potions position at Hogwarts."

"And who would take care of the Slytherins?" Snape asked aghast.

"Someone with better intentions, less prejudice and no hidden agenda," Hermione answered clearly.

"And what you are talking about?" The Potions Master snapped again.

"You always called me a _'known-it-all'_, Professor. I think I'm in position to guess what you were planning to do. You wanted to be in position to have influence over powerful and rich purebloods and as an extra benefit, be able to torment and harass half-bloods and Muggleborns." Hermione answered.

Rufus Scrimegour was tired to turn his head from one side to the other, trying to follow the word match.

"That's enough!" The Minister finally shouted. "I think we will close this award ceremony right now."

At the protests and groans from the press, he turned toward the group.

"We will reschedule a press meeting soon," Scrimegour turned toward Snape and the Aurors. "Please _follow_ Mister Snape to my office; I think we need to have a long talk."

Snape shook the hands that tried to hold his arms and climbed down from the stage keeping his head high and a sneer in his face.

"Mister Potter, I hope we can meet again without so much… stress," Scrimegour tried. He didn't know if he liked the young man at all, but he sure needed him at his side.

"We can try, Minister," Harry answered. "But better be warned that things did tend to happen around me, even when I do my best to prevent them."

"I'm really starting to doubt how much effort you put into prevention, Harry," Hermione commented.

"The doubt is if he tries to prevent them or if he tries to go toward them," Ron said laughing.

Harry faked a frown to his friends and then shook the Minister's hand before climbing down the stage and going back to his group of friends.

McGonagall, Hermione and Ron also got out of the stage and were reunited with the Order of the Phoenix and the Hogwarts staff. They bundled together and started to make way to leave the room. Harry was carefully shielded inside the big group of people.

Minister Scrimegour sighed and turned to leave the place too, with Percy hot in his heels.

"Not exactly what we have planned, sir," Percy tried to start a conversation with his boss.

"I should have listened to your father when he tried to warn me, Weasley," Rufus Scrimegour said in a low voice. "Looks like I will have to revise my list of trustworthy advisers."

Percy kept walking behind the Minister, unable to decide if the comment was a good or a bad thing for him.

* * *

TBC… 


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: English is my second language, so I'm doing the best I can with the automatic correction from the word processor. This chapter wasn't beta.

* * *

**CHAPTER NINE**

"Alright, Harry, what was that?" Hermione rounded his friend as soon as the entire group was back at Hogwarts and settled themselves at the Great Hall. They started to eat a filling lunch offered by the house-elves.

"What are you asking, Hermione?" Harry asked while he was choosing what to eat.

"How you did a wandless and silent shield? I didn't know you could do wandless magic!"

"Calm down, Hermione," Harry took a bite and chewed calmly.

Ron smacked Harry's head lightly. "Prat! Answer her! Nobody wants to live with a Hermione with her knickers in a twist!"

It was Hermione's turn to smack his boyfriend. "That's nothing wrong with my knickers! I just want to know how Harry achieved wandless magic! We were together practically the entire of last year and we never trained it!"

Harry gulped his food down and turned to his friends. "I tried by myself whenever I couldn't sleep. But I also wasn't very sure if it would really work."

"If you weren't sure, why did you use it to defend against Snape?" Remus asked.

"I wanted to make a stand. And, for me, both ways would work. If my wandless shield worked, everything would be ok and I would make a better impression. If didn't work, then everybody would still see what a greasy git Snape was."

"Very interesting in theory, Harry, but you couldn't know what he would use to attack you with. If it was a dark or dangerous curse and it connected, you could be in St.Mungo's right now," Remus said worried.

"Nah… I always could duck." Harry answered, oblivious to the astounded expressions around him.

"Harry!" The high pitch cry from Hermione grabbed Harry's attention. "You can't go around not taking risks seriously! All we been through this last year didn't make any last impression in your thick skull?!"

"Of course it did…"

"It doesn't seem so; mate, with you throwing around, close to Hermione's ears, that you don't care for your safety and health…" Ron said with some humour in his voice.

"Of course I care for my safety…"

"No, you don't!" Hermione exclaimed. "Not when you go with your hair brain plans without even telling us about them!"

"Ookaayyy…" Harry looked around for all the disapproving glances staring at him. "Sorry. I really didn't think much about it. I never thought Snape would be stupid enough to use a truly dark curse in front of all that people, while receiving an award."

"You never think, Potter!" Hermione answered angry. She tried to get out of the table but Harry held her hand, holding her in place.

"I'm really sorry, Hermione. I didn't do it to hurt or worry you. It was just a plan that popped on my mind at the time. A way to get even with the greasy git."

"Ah, Harry," Hermione sniffed. "We worry about you. None of us want to see you hurt. And after this hard year you went and disappear on us, going on to fight Voldemort by yourself…"

"I thought we were past this discussion…" Harry said.

"Not when you keep put yourself in danger without asking for our help, mate." Ron said while embracing his girlfriend, letting Hermione rest her head on his shoulder.

"I always ask for your help, Ron!" Harry seemed really upset now. "I couldn't have done half the things in my life without Hermione's and yours help."

"Maybe they aren't explaining very well, Harry," Remus intervened. "I think they want to say that you never asked for help for the most dangerous parts of your adventures. They help to plan and arrange everything, but they were never there for the really big fight…"

Harry looked around with various heads nodding in agreement with Remus comment.

"It was not supposed to be…" he started.

"What was not supposed to be, Harry?" it was Ginny this time. "You're not supposed to have help? We are not supposed to be in danger?"

"I don't know, ok!" Harry stood up and turned to face the group at the table. He ran a hand over his messy hair. "I just know that, at the end, I'm alone, ok? I don't do it on purpose or anything! It's just how things always are! Merlin, I don't know what more you want from me!" And Harry turned his back to the group and left the Great Hall almost running.

The big room immersed in silence, with the people there astounded by the young man's explosion or even a bit uncomfortable with the entire scene. The group exchanged glances, each trying to prompt the other to do or say something. Finally Lupin started to stand up but Mrs. Weasley held him by his arm.

"No, Remus, I think it's better that we let Harry be for now."

"What?!" Fred exclaimed.

"No advice for a Weasley hug," George continued.

"Or a lecture from Mum?" Fred finished.

"I would love to hug him and pour some advice into his ears," Mrs. Weasley answered smiling. "But I think it's really not the moment. Let him be and he will come back to us when he had the time to clear things in his mind."

"There's been less than a week since he finished off You-Know-Who," Mr. Weasley said.

"And this entire mess has been in his mind for at least three years," Tonks completed.

"He will really need some time to figure out that the focus of his life changed," Kingsley said.

The group still at the table nodded in acceptance and turned to finish their lunch. But most of their thoughts were still with the dark haired and confused young man running outside the castle.

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He was tired. Tired of all the running and fighting of the last years. Tired of his own moody swings. Tired to try to maintain high standards to satisfy everybody else image of a hero. Tired to try to live up to their expectations.

It was high time for him to find out what were his standards and his expectations and then start doing things the way he wanted them instead of trying to please others. He would never win this game. If the adults were satisfy, his friends were not. If the Wizarding public was happy, usually meant he was in a bad situation.

'_I did complete the big task set out for me,' _Harry though while plumping on the grass nearby the lake. _'I planned and executed, quite well, the final attack against Voldemort. Since this worked, maybe I can plan what to do with my life from now on'._

Harry relaxed under the sun and closed his eyes, letting his mind wander and enjoying the possibility of freedom that he could picture in his future.

It was some splashed water that woke Harry up. He opened his eyes lazily to find his glasses wet and a hazy image of the Giant Squid traveling around the lake. Harry sat up and watched while the creature floated on the water, apparently without destination. Its arms rose lazily, as if making gestures all around.

Harry observed for some time and soon his was laughing out loud. No reason at all, just the overwhelming feeling of happiness and freedom.

'_The Giant Squid is right, let the wind take us wherever…' _he though then stood up, brushed his robes and walked back to the castle, feeling lighter than any other time he could remember.

The Great Hall was empty when Harry entered it. The houses-elves had already prepared the big table for dinner time, but the meal shouldn't start for at least another couple of hours. Harry thought about climbing to the Gryffindor Tower but decided he preferred to keep his good mood and another "talk" with his friends might not permit that. Since he was really planning in taking the NEWTs, Harry decided that a visit to the library wouldn't go amiss. He walked through the corridors trying to whistle and laughing softly for his feeble attempts.

The library's doors were open and Harry walked in, said a quick hello toward the scowling Madam Pince and went to look for some information about what to expect from the Nearly Exhausting Wizarding Tests.

He was flipping through the list of Potions required of NEWT level, considering how much he wouldn't be able to take that test, when some noise at the entrance of the library brought his attention to the world around him.

Ginny was walking toward him, her stubborn expression firmly on her face. Her chocolate-brown eyes were flashing and the purpose in her steps clued Harry that she was a girl with a mission. A mission she though might encounter some resistance.

'_Well, I may be thick-head for a lot of things, but I'm not bonkers to go against __**that**__ temper,'_ Harry thought closing the book in front of him and waiting for the witch's approach.

"Harry Potter!" Ginny started. "Those moody swings have to stop! You are of age! You can't go around stomping out of conversations when you don't like what's being said!"

Ginny was just starting to heat up to her rant when a furious "Sshuusshh!" came from the librarian.

Ginny turned to confront the ferocious stare of Madam Pince. "I'm sorry…"

"You should be, young lady. I will not permit this kind of behaviour on my library. If you want to study, you can sit down and do quietly. If you want to talk, do that outside!" and the librarian turned away and walked silently back to her on table. As soon as she was sited, she glared again toward Ginny.

Harry fought to control the laugh in him and stood up, holding Ginny's hand and pulling her out of the place before she earned a detention during the summer holiday.

"I quite agree," Harry said to Ginny, as if their conversation was never interrupted, when they enter the Great Hall.

"What?" Ginny asked confused.

"I agree that I can't go on having temper tantrums anymore."

"Oh…" she said, all the blister blown away.

"I thought a bit when I was outside and I reach a decision too."

"And what that might be, Potter?" Ginny was miffed that she couldn't deliver the entire speech she had prepare for this occasion.

"I will find out what I want and then I will go get it," Harry stated calmly, sitting at the dinner table.

"Oh…" again Ginny was lost in what to say.

"I did what everybody else expected of me. I completed the task I had to. Now I will take some time to figure out what to do next." Harry played with the cutlery over the table. "I think I never really believed this would end well for me… That's why I didn't think too hard about what to do afterwards…"

"Harry," Ginny tried to say but the young man interrupted her.

"Ginny, I really don't know what I should do or what I _**can**_ do… But I'm starting to figure out some things I _**don't**_ want to do. Maybe not the best way to go, but if it's what works for me…" he shook his head.

Ginny took a deep breath and boldly reach out to hold Harry's hand over the table.

"And what you don't want to do?"

Their fingers intertwined in an awkward way, but neither of them tried to pull out from the touch.

"I don't want to be an Auror anymore. I have seen enough about that…"

Ginny squeezed his hand to show comfort and support.

"I want to experiment a bit and I don't want to worry about politics or reports…"

"Good luck there, Potter," Ginny smirked but with a smile that took out the malice in the comment.

He returned the smile and played with her fingers in an absent-minded way.

"Uh… And you want to experience with, Harry?" She asked with uncertainty, her eyes glued on their intertwined fingers.

"Well, I'm thinking about trying some curse breaking…"

"Curse-breaking?" Ginny was surprised.

"Yeah, all in all, in this Horcrux hunt, the spells we had to learn and use to get to them were really interesting. And to find out the right way to get to them… It was quite challenging and exciting," Harry said with enthusiasm.

"And what can you tell us about them, Harry?" the question surprised both teens and they separated their hands in a haste move.

They turned around to find the Weasleys boys, minus Ron, Tonks and Kingsley sitting around the table.

"I'm sure Hermione can give more details," Harry started to answer just to be interrupted by George. Harry didn't know how or when he started to be able to tell the twins apart but it was automatic now and he was rarely mistaken.

"Ah, Harry, we don't want a six hours lecture of the arithmancy involved in each spell used in the last 9 months…"

"We just want a general and exciting tale of your adventures in this hunt," Fred completed.

Harry looked around, finding only eager and curious faces turned to him. Kingsley gave a little nod, approving of Harry's tale.

"Okay," Harry acquiesced. "But don't ask for too many details. Hermione was the one taking notes."

Soft chuckles were heard all around and Harry sighed, trying to order his thoughts over all they had done this past year.

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"You lot know about the first two Horcruxes destroyed, right?" with the nods all around, Harry kept going. "The diary was the easiest to deal with because it was the first Tom did. So we could touch it without much trouble," at that Harry shot a glance at Ginny to see how she was dealing with the memories of the first year and the possession her suffer.

Her head was bowed and Bill had an arm over her shoulders but she wasn't crying.

When the silence stretched for to long, Ginny looked up smiled feebly to Harry.

"It's okay. I'm fine. Go on," she prompted him.

He shot another dubious glance toward her but keep on with his tale.

"I finished it with the broken tooth of the basilisk. The venom destroyed the magic in there. Dumbledore went after the Gaunt's ring and destroyed it, along with his own hand," Harry shook his head in dismay.

"I don't know what happened, he never told me, but I think the ring did more than just black his hand. He was… weakened." Now Harry was lost in his thoughts and memories, not paying attention to his surrenders.

"The night Hogwarts was attacked…" he gulped, clearly upset. "We… Dumbledore and me, went to retrieve what we believed at the time, to be the third horcrux, a medallion that belonged to Salazar Slytherin. Dumbledore drank the potion protecting it," Harry paused again.

"I made he drank it. We got the medallion and came back to find the invaders."

"Dumbledore's portrait said that the leftover from the ring's curses were slowly killing him," McGonagall voice interceded.

Harry turned sharply to find out the entire staff and the rest of the Order members still on the castle had joined the dinner table. No food had appeared, the group too intend in hearing the story.

"It was not your fault, Mr. Potter," The headmistress said with firmness.

Harry nodded and continued with the story. "The medallion we found was false. Someone retrieved the original one and put it in the same place to mislead Tom. Of course Hermione was the one who put the clues together and found out who did it."

"R.A.B., the signature on the note inside the false medallion, stood for Regulus Arcturus Black, Sirius's brother," Hermione gave the information.

Harry turned to face his friend, smiling sadly. "Hermione also remembered seeing a medallion a lot alike the fake one when we were cleaning Grimauld Place. We went after Mundungus because he had been…"

"Dung was trying to make some money taking things from Sirius's house," Kingsley said. "We caught him and retrieved almost everything he took, but there wasn't any medallion."

"Kreacher had hidden it," Harry said. "Regulus asked him to keep the medallion safe until he could came back and take it. He never got the chance. Voldemort killed him before he was able to find out a way to destroy it. The irony was that Voldemort never found out what Regulus did. He killed him because he wanted out."

"Sirius would have helped if he knew…" Tonks comment.

"Those were troubled times," Kingsley comment. "Everybody was afraid. Regulus would know his brother was not a Death Eater but he also knew about a traitor in the Order, so he knew that he might put his brother in even more danger. That's probably why he didn't ask for help."

After the group around the table agreed on the assessment, Harry continued.

"So, after some fighting, Kreacher gave me the medallion..."

"He couldn't deny you, Harry, you were his master," Tonks said.

"The fight was between Harry and Hermione," Ron commented trying to hide his laughter.

"I just thought we could do it in a better manner, not intimidating the poor elf!" Hermione tried to defend herself.

"Poor elf?!" Tonks exclaimed. "Are you talking about the same vicious, traitorous, disgusting being?!"

"He couldn't help himself!" Hermione complained.

"Well, if this will revert to a S.P.E.W. discussion, I think I prefer to have dinner," Harry said.

"No!" Bill exclaimed. "I want to know the rest of the story! And everybody knows the truth about that thing. Let Hermione have her egalitarian dreams."

Ron had to embrace his girlfriend to stop her to continue with the discussion. "Not now, Hermione. We all know there is no way anyone will change their minds about it. Let it go."

The girl puffed and pouted but stayed silent. Every body else turned back to Harry, waiting for the rest of the story.

"At that point we already decided that it would be better to gather the Horcruxes and only tried to destroy them when we had enough information so we could avoid a disaster, liking loosing a limb or end up dead."

"And you thought they weren't responsible enough to pull this off," Mr. Weasley commented to his wife. She pushed him with a smile.

"Maybe Ron and I weren't, at the beginning, but Hermione kept us on the narrow and straight road," Harry joked.

"She sure did!" Ron exclaimed and received a light snap on the back of his head from his girlfriend because of his comment.

"I sure tried to teach something to those tow," Hermione said with a righteous attitude.

"I think we teach you something too, Hermione," Harry said.

"I thought she learned about breaking rules and do foolish things from you two on your first year," Fred joked.

"The troll and the Stone?" George remembered.

"That's another story entirely. Let's not go there right now," Ron interrupted.

"Yes, where I would have to explain why I was corned by a Mountain troll on the girls' bathroom," Hermione smirked.

"Back on track, people!" Ginny exclaimed. "I want to know the rest but I'm also getting quite hungry here."

"Ask something to nimble one," Ron suggested and the group around found out why he hadn't complain about the late dinner yet. Ron had a large sandwich half hidden under the table.

"Maybe we should adjourn this story telling until after dinner," McGonagall offered.

"Only if Harry promised to eat really quickly," Charlie suggested. "We can eat normally; he's the one who has to do all the talking."

After the laughter died out, the dinner popped on the table, and the group start eating, exchange comments and information about what they had already hear.

Ginny nudged Harry and pointed to his plate.

"Eat up, Potter, you will the strength."

He smiled and munched around his plate, not really hungry with all the memories so vivid in his mind.

Harry decide quite quickly that he preferred to finish his tale so he could leave all this behind, so he pushed his plate away and ran a hand over his messy hair.

"So after Kreacher released the medallion, Hermione created a sealed jar where we carried it around with us, all the while research a way to destroy it."

The people around kept eating almost like automatons, their attention totally focus on the tale.

"The next one we found was Ravenclaw's brooch, a jewel that was being exposed at the Ministry of Magic itself."

Various 'aahh' and 'oohh' kept in tempo with the story and its high points.

"It was in a display on Scrimegour office and that was a hard one to break. This is something else we own the twins. I think we tested at least five different products on the night we raided his office."

"Oy, that's was a good one! The Polyjuice Balloon became a great success!" George informed.

"When they found out that something was taken from the office, they couldn't trace it back to that invasion," Mr. Weasley chuckled.

"That's not right, Arthur!" Mrs. Weasleys was divided between outrages and proud of their accomplishments.

"Sure, it would have gone really well if we just knocked in his door and asked for it," Ron joked.

"Especially with Scrimegour dying to get a hold on me," Harry agreed.

"Another sealed jar and we felt we were getting a bit above our heads," Hermione comment.

"We were able to find them but we still didn't have any idea how to destroy them," Harry continued. "Between find the medallion and the brooch, we were already into the Christmas hols and getting a bit despaired. We got a good lead to where Huffepuff's cup should be and in the way to its hiding place we met some rogue Dementors."

"What?!" Ginny, Tonks and Mrs. Weasley shouted at the same time.

"I don't remember being informed of this!" Mrs. Weasley complained.

"You knew?!" Tonks asked of Remus.

"No… There was nothing in his letters," Remus was quite pale.

"You lot knew we weren't telling everything! No security in owl posts, remember?" Ron huffed.

"But… Dementors…?"

"It ended up being a good thing, Mrs. Weasley," Harry tried to calm her down.

"How meeting rogue Dementors could be a good thing?!" Ginny exclaimed.

"They took care of Ravenclaw's brooch," Hermione answered.

"What?!"

"How…?!"

"They used it on their robes?"

"I didn't know there were female Dementors…"

"Maybe a gay one to be interesting in jewelery…"

"This is no joke!"

"I knew it was too dangerous!"

The comments and questions and jokes ran around the table and Harry took the time to drink some pumpkin juice to calm down his tiring throat.

"There wasn't so many of them," Ron tried. "Five, I think."

"Nothing close to the hundred Harry dispelled in third year," Hermione informed.

"Another story for another time, Hermione," Harry tried to avert disaster while looking at the thunderous face of Mrs. Weasley.

"How come the Dementors took care of the brooch?" Bill asked, given back the command of the talk to Harry.

"They sucked out the piece of soul in it," Harry said.

"Uow!"

"Merlin's beard!"

"That's…"

Again the comments ran around the group, the surprise evident in everyone's face.

"We were tired and afraid of flare out our position with too much magic, so we tried to hide instead of face them," Harry continued. "But we lost the jar with the brooch then. I think it fell of the knapsack when we ran. The Dementors went berserk. I think it was a juice meal for them. They fought for the jar and when it broke they gripped the brooch and…."

"What?" Bill asked anxiously when Harry stopped.

"Performed the kiss…" he answered.

"It was the most disgusting thing I ever saw," Ron commented.

"I couldn't eat for a couple of days after what I saw," Hermione completed.

"I just kept remembering Sirius…" Harry said with a faraway look.

Once more the silence graced the table and the house-elves took the food away but left some tea pots and juice jars.

Harry breathed deeply and continued. "We used our Patroni to send them away and fled the area. We stayed for a couple of days in a nearby farm. After we calm down we understand that this was a way to destroy the Horcruxe."

"Why not throw them the medallion too?" Fred asked quietly.

"We didn't think of it at the time," Hermione answered.

"And since that band were rogue Dementors walking leisurely in the country, I thought that this would tip our hand to Voldemort," Harry said, ignoring the shudders all around.

"What we didn't know was that Oldy Vorty was already suspecting our travels. He never believed we want some time off of the entire war thing," Ron smirked.

"When we finally reach the place where we believed Hufflepuff's cup was hidden, we found one more guard, a living one this time," Harry said.

"Wormtail…" Remus sneered with a mix of hate and sadness.

"Yeah, the little rat was there to check that Tom's arrangements weren't disturbed," Harry continued. "He didn't know what he was supposed to check, only that it should be undisturbed. We knew we would find a lot of traps, so we approached it with care and were able to find out he was there before he could see us."

"And where it was? The cup?" Charlie asked.

"At Borgin & Burkes," Hermione answered.

"Knockturn Alley?" Tonks exclaimed.

"And nobody ever guessed?" George asked.

"There were so many dark things in that place that I doubt anyone could pinpoint the Horcrux without knowing it was there," Kingsley commented.

"That was a wicked explosion, Harry," Fred congratulated him with a big smile.

"It could have destroyed Diagon Alley!" Mrs. Weasley interfered.

"What were you thinking to destroy that thing in the middle of the shopping area?" McGonagall asked disappointed.

"We didn't plan to destroy it there," Hermione tried to defend themselves.

"It was Wormtail that shred our plans," Ron completed.

"We should just pick the cup and go back to Grimauld Place to rest a bit and research so more," Harry said. "But Wormtail was there and Mr. Borgin was really nervous with all the movement around his store. The Aurors were making weekly visits, the Death Eaters kept coming back asking for dark objects, the man was a wreck."

"We did tried to just take the cup," Hermione said again.

"But Wormtail interfered and I had to do something to prevent him to take the cup back to Voldemort, so I called in the Wizard Debt he owned me for saving his life in my third year," Harry told.

"I went on and tried to put a containment field around the store," Hermione said.

"And I jumped in like a Gryffindor and tried a Banishing Charm on Wormtail while he was holding the cup," Ron said in self-depreciation.

"That didn't go well, I presume," Bill commented.

"Wormtail was garbage, I agree," Fred said.

"But banishing him, Ron?" George asked shaking his head.

"I was in a hurry, tired and hungry!" the young man tried to defend himself.

"Well, that explain everything," Ginny said. "He's usually thick-head, but hungry…" she shook her head in disappointment.

"Oy!" Ron tried to complain in the middle of the laughter that filled the place.

"We never really found out what happened," Harry continued after the laughter died out. "The mixture of all the dark magic around, trying to banish the cup and my request of the fulfilment of the Wizard Oath all mixed together, I believe."

"I tried some arithmancy calculations," Hermione began but was quickly cut out by Fred.

"No lectures! Harry promised us adventure!"

"We can sit together and try to study the phenomenon afterwards, Miss Granger," came the offer from Professor Flitwick.

The young woman pouted again but let it go, so Harry could return to the tale.

"The cup's curses must have activated when feeling the Banishing Cham and magic was trying to make Wormtail give me the cup. I never saw where Mr. Borgin went during the fracas but he must have tried some kind of protection spell too. All of a sudden the place was exploding and on fire and we were alive thanks to the protection field Hermione had raised…"

"I dragged those two out of there as fast as I could, but by then the store was half destroyed and people were panicking in the Alley," Hermione said.

"We did make it to the Apparition point," Ron contributed.

"And we apparated to Hogsmead in the middle of the confusion," Hermione said.

"We apparated in tandem, one helping the other," Harry told. "We were all hurt then."

"I would say!" Madam Pomfrey interfered. "You three crawled from the village to Hogwarts and took me a week to raise your magical levels!"

Mrs. Weasley turned to the nurse. "You didn't call me! You never told me!"

"Calm down, Molly," Mr. Weasley tried.

"I couldn't!" Madam Pomfrey defended herself.

"The Ministry was all over us, Molly," Minerva McGonagall interfered. "If you just popped in Hogwarts when your only child there wasn't sick, they would know about those three and we couldn't allow that to happen."

"We were more tired than really hurt, Mom," Ron tried.

"And the time here did give us the opportunity to find out a way to destroy Slytherin's medallion," Hermione completed.

"Let me get this straight," Bill said. "You did a good detective job to find out where the Horcruxes were and how to get them, but all the destruction was accidental?"

The understanding seemed to drop over everyone around the table and again 'oohhh' and 'aahhs' filled the place.

"Well…" Ron started.

"You could say that," Hermione said with ill-concealed discomfort.

"The truth is that the destruction of only two of the Horcruxes was carefully planned," Harry stated.

"Which two?" Charlie asked.

"Slytherin's medallion and Nagini," Harry answered.

"How so?" it was Bill turn.

"While we were at the Hospital wing we talked about how every other Horcrux was destroyed and what we could learn from the experiences to do something about the medallion. Hermione conjectured about the basilisk venom being a powerful option and I said the corpse of it should still be at the Chamber, so…"

"You went back into the Chambers?" Ginny whispered her question, interrupting Harry's tale.

"Yeah…"

"But the snake was dead…" Fred commented.

"The poison was still in its sacks in her mouth," Hermione explained.

"So you three went back into the Chamber of Secrets," Headmistress McGonagall said with a stern look.

"Technically," Hermione responded. "Harry was the only one to go back. Ron never really went all the way, being trapped by the rock slide. And I was petrified while they were trying to decipher the mystery."

"But you three did go into the Chamber?" Tonks asked in awe and a bit of disgust.

"Amazingly enough, the place was not as bad as my dreams made me believe it was," Ron whispered.

"The basilisk's corpse was almost intact," Hermione said.

"We put the medallion in its open mouth," Harry started.

"You put it there, mate," Ron interrupted. "I didn't get five meters near that thing."

"My brave hero," Hermione joked.

"You saw the size of that?!" Ron complained.

"Oh, yes, I did," Hermione stated.

"Anyway," Harry continued. "I put the medallion in the mouth of the snake and used Gryffindor's sword again to slash the poison's sacks open."

"There's where the sword disappeared to!" The headmistress exclaimed.

"Uh…" Harry mumbled a bit disconcerted. "I asked Dobby to get it for me."

"When I asked the portraits, Dumbledore's just said the sword was needed again and a true Gryffindor had it," McGonagall said with a faraway look.

"The venom spilled and dissolved the medallion," Ron said.

"It was a lot noisier and messier than that," Hermione stated.

"The poison destroyed the Horcrux and the curses in it tried to destroy the basilisk," Harry explained.

"The venom won," Ron informed.

"We were even able to harvest the basilisk for some very interesting and rare potions ingredients," Hermione said.

"You didn't tell us that!" Fred shouted.

"What we could do with some of it," George dreamed.

"Don't you two dare!" Mrs. Weasleys cried.

"We still have it, don't worry," Harry whispered to the dastardly duo.

"So that was one of the planned destructions?" Bill asked again.

"Yeah," Ron confirmed.

"I must say it was well done," Bill nodded.

"Thank you," Hermione said primly, starting a new round of laughter.

"That's when you three were officially back here, preparing for the final confrontation?" Tonks asked.

"Yes," Harry kept on. "The Horcruxes were destroyed, only Nagini was missing. And we already had discussed that we need to destroy her during the attack at Voldemort."

"Then this _**prat**_," Ron slapped Harry's head. "Went all by himself to fight out the big bad wizard."

"As I said early," Harry returned the slap over Ron's head. "I thought we had finished this discussion."

"I still didn't get the chance to bash your head in for run of without us," Ron answered.

"You can't attack someone who just received an Order of Merlin award!" Harry joked. "What the public would say?!"

"The infamy!" Fred cried.

"It would look like he didn't deserve it!" George completed.

"Don't worry," Harry said seriously. "I'm not planning in risk my life so reckless anymore."

"As if you ever planned any of it before," Tonks snorted.

"Or if your definition of reckless would meet ours," Mrs. Weasley commented.

"I'm just thinking about NEWTs and what to do after it, I swear!"

"We will see, Mr. Potter," Headmistress McGonagall used her most severe stare at the black-haired young man.

"But how did you find out where to go looking for the Horcruxes?" Bill asked.

"I said I wouldn't go in too many details," Harry answered. "Hermione is the one planning a book about it."

"A book?" Professor Flitwick turned to the young woman.

"Yes. I'm writing an accurate historical account of Voldemort's second rising."

"That's a big plan." Charlie commented.

"And something that can land you with a mastery just after your NEWTs. Really clever, Hermione." Fred smirked.

"I won't deny I did think about that," Hermione answered in the middle of snorts being heard all around. "But I think even more important is to have an accurate account of what really happened."

"As much as we know," Harry said.

"What you mean?"

"We might never know what Dumbledore did with the ring. His portrait isn't talking."

"True."

"And I don't know if is even possible to find out what caused the explosion at Borgin & Burkes."

"Too many unknown elements and variables."

"At least will be much more accurate than anything the Daily Prophet could write."

"Or would!"

"I see plenty of plans," McGonagall commented. "But I think is time we all go to bed. Some rest and fresh heads in the morning may think clearly."

"I don't think you should encourage this lot," Tonks laughed.

"We all need a good night's sleep," Mr. Weasley said.

"You all are more than welcome to stay at Hogwarts," the headmistress said.

"The only dormitory open is Gryffindor Tower," Professor Flitwick said.

"I think we can live with that," Bill joked.

"I would love to see the lion's den"! Tonks exclaimed.

"To bed, children, trot you go!" Mrs. Weasley stood up and gestured as if conduit a herd.

At the doors of the Great Hall the group disperse, the staff going back to their quarters and the rest of the Order members and the young crew climbing up toward Gryffindor Tower and a deserved sleep.

* * *

TBC… 

A/N 2: I usually know how my stories will go but Harry Potter has a magic of its own and it took complete control over this one. That's the only explanation I have for such a deviation from my original plan.

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	10. Chapter 10

A/N: English is my second language, so I'm doing the best I can with the checking of the word processor. This chapter wasn't beta.

A/N 2: I'm sorry and all that about the long the delay. I got lost and didn't really know where to go with the story. This is quite short and I'm counting on it to be a warm up to show me the way to continue.

* * *

**CHAPTER TEN**

The group entered Gryffindor Tower and Mrs. Weasley directed everyone to their rooms.

Bill, Charlie and Kingsley choose the would-be-sixth-year boys' dorm, while Hestia Jones and Tonks went to the sixth year girls' room. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley took the first room the right, where the new first year boys' should go coming September. The Twins were quickly to claim the fifth year boys' room, leaving the seventh's to Ron and Harry. Ginny and Hermione would stay at the seventh year girls' dorm.

The group dispersed rather quickly, but Harry was able to hold on to Ginny's hand and make her stay at the common room after it emptied.

The couple stopped in front of the stairs toward the dorms and Harry held both of hands into his, taking a deep breath before starting to talk.

"Ginny, there is something more that I would like to experiment with."

The younger girl inhaled surprised and squeezed Harry's hand in a silent sign for him to continue.

"I would like to see how we can try and make a relationship work, even if you will be at school and I will be muddle around, trying to find something to do."

Ginny opened her mouth to answer but Harry stopped her with a gentle finger over her lips.

"No, don't say anything now. Sleep over it. Talk with somebody, if you wish. Think about it before you answer. Whatever you choose to do, it will be alright to me. At least, you will always be my friend." He substituted his finger with his lips, giving her a quick peck, and then he released her hands and climbed the stairs two at a time.

"Harry Potter!" Ginny screamed. "You can't just say that and walk away!"

"Go to sleep, Ginny!" It was Mrs. Weasley's voice. "Whatever it is, you two can resolve it tomorrow."

The red head stomped all the way to the room she was sharing with Hermione. Before the other girl's inquisitive stare, Ginny just shook her shoulders and plumbed on her bed. Even with so much in her mind, sleep gripped her swiftly.

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Hermione and Ginny met with almost the entire group in the common room the next morning. They walked together toward the Great Hall for coffee.

"Your father, Kingsley, Tonks and Hestia went to work," Mrs. Weasley informed after some whispered question from Bill.

"Harry wasn't in bed when I woke up," Ron told the others.

"I worry so much about that boy," Mrs. Weasley said. "And he went to the Ministry with Kingsley."

"I don't think is correct to call him a boy anymore, mum," Charlie commented.

"He wasn't a boy for a long time now," Hermione whispered. "After he destroyed Voldemort, I would say that this part of his life is officially over."

"Even so…" Mrs. Weasley tried again just to be interrupted by Bill.

"Let it go, mum. We can help him cope; we can be around and be his friends whenever he needs."

"But we can not tell him how to live his life," Ron finished.

Mrs. Weasley agreed sadly, still murmuring how much cuddling and protection she believed Harry needed. Her children just shook their heads, knowing that nothing could really change her opinion or her behaviour.

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"So, what happened to the grumpy grease git?" Harry asked Shacklebolt while they arranged themselves on the Senior Auror's room.

"Well, he did get a dress down from the Minister," Kingsley chuckled.

"Well deserved and all that but I doubt it will cause a lasting impression."

"Ah, yeah, you do know Snape," Kingsley said. "But he certainly won't be going back to Hogwarts."

"He got a new post in the Ministry?"

"Oh, no! I wouldn't survive that!" Kingsley answered with an alarmed expression. "The Green Apothecary and Potions Company offered him a post."

"I really don't like potions and I never heard of them," Harry commented making a face.

"It's the company owned by the Greengrass family," Kingsley smiled. "They kept quite neutral in all this confusion, so they were out of the Ministry eye."

"But they certainly are a well known pureblood family."

"You can't condemn all of them, Harry." Kingsley said seriously.

"I know, but I do get suspicious," the young man answered.

"You can't go all your life like that, Harry, looking behind your back and doubting people around you."

"What happened to the 'Constant vigilance' motto? Moody would skin you alive if he heard you," Harry laughed.

"That's true and I agree that we can't just let go of the caution, but I'm against this high form of paranoia," Kingsley answered.

"Ok, I'll try to find an equilibrium, ok, but I'll not stop being suspicious of Snape and his cohorts."

"I think it's a smart idea to keep an eye on the silent purebloods. Don't worry, even if Scrimegour is a politician, he will not let something like You-Know-Who happens again any time soon."

"I hope you're right," Harry whispered. Then he looked the older man direct into his eyes. "And the first attitude should be dealing with this stupid "you-know-who" and others epithets, don't your think?"

"I'm work on it, ok, Potter," Kingsley said a bit annoyed. "It's not that easy, when you grew up hearing horror stories about that name."

"Yeah, I know. It was hard enough for Ron to start playing with it. But this should really be an issue. You can't have Aurors afraid to say the name of a criminal, can you?"

"Right," Kingsley said, looking sideways to the young man. "Let's get on with this report so you can go back to Hogwarts and the Minister can be happy."

"Just point the way and I'll follow," Harry joked.

Shacklebolt shook his head and pulled out the parchment and the Dictation quill to proceed with the report of the demise of the last Dark Lord.

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"We have been rather lucky, haven't we?" Harry asked, his eyes lost in a distance and invisible image, his head sustained by a hand under his chin.

Kingsley Shacklebolt finished the final touches on the report he was tidying up for the Minister and sighed profoundly before turned his eyes toward the pensive face of the young man.

"What you mean?"

"So few of us died," Harry answered. "Especially in the last battle, at Malfoy Manor."

"We had lost so many already," Kingsley shook his head.

"Ah, I'm not diminishing the losses," Harry said quickly. "But I must confess that I expect so much more…"

"I still don't understand," Kingsley said while preparing the report for delivery. After the last charm and after seeing the parchment duplicate itself and flew out of his desk, Shacklebolt turned all his attention to the young man.

"I was so afraid I would loose more of my friends and dear ones," Harry lowed his eyes, fleeing from the inquisitive glace of the black man. "I was afraid that Ron or Hermione would die, or maybe one of the Weasleys…"

"Or maybe Remus," Kingsley said with understanding, seeing the young man in front of him nod curtly.

"In that light, yes, we were quite lucky," Kingsley agreed.

* * *

TBC 


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: English is my second language, so I'm doing the best I can with the checking of the word processor. This chapter was revised by doRodrigo.

A/N 2: I'll give no excuses for the long wait for this chapter besides how difficult it was for me to write it. This story started with a one, or possible, two-shots and grew beyond my plans. So took me some time to put this together. I hope you approve of it.

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**CHAPTER ELEVEN**

The NEWTs arrived too quickly for Ron and Harry, and not soon enough for an anxious Hermione.

The day of the first test, the trio entered the designated room at the Wizarding Examination Authority department inside the Ministry of Magic building to find a dozen other teens already seated there.

"Home schooled," whispered Hermione to the boys before she went to find a front row desk to sit.

Ron and Harry exchanged a knowing look and went to find places close by their studious friend.

The independent NEWTs tests were much like the ones performed at Hogwarts. The tests were separated in theoretical and practical, when applicable, and spread out through two weeks at the middle of August.

When the final test was done, the trio seated at a quiet spot at the entrance hall of the Ministry to chat while they waited for Mr. Weasley to leave work, so they could go together back to the Burrow.

"The independent NEWTs don't happen every year," Hermione was in her explanation mode.

Harry and Ron recognized it as a way for the young woman to calm down after the stressing tests.

"Only when there are home schooled students of age they set up this option. I read in Hogwarts: a History that they always try to invite de students to have their tests together with the Hogwarts' ones, but they usually refuse."

"Well, if their parents choose to home school them, I don't think they would want anything to do with Hogwarts at all," Harry said, not really paying attention to the talk, but more intend in watching the come and goings of the Ministry.

"It seems a useless prejudice to me," Hermione stated.

"I can't imagine you agreeing in staying away from school, Hermione," Ron joked.

"Well, there might be reasons…" Hermione was interrupted by Harry's question.

"Whom Marchbanks is arguing with?"

"What?"

"She's over there, looking really pissed, talking with someone that's behind that column," Harry explained.

"Maybe someone isn't happy with the NEWTs or OWLs' results," Ron wondered.

"Who would be arguing this now, in the middle of the Ministry Atrium?" Hermione commented.

"Someone who thinks she can do anything," Harry answered, getting up and walking toward the old witch.

"Harry?" Hermione and Ron stood up to follow him and the young woman gulped while Ron cursed when they identified who was Griselda Marchbanks' interlocutor.

"…better for the Wizarding world," it was all Harry was able to hear from the toad's speech.

"The problem with this phrase is that we probably disagree in what's best for the Wizarding world," Harry said in clipped tones, stopping by the side of the older of the two witches.

"Mister Potter…" She sent an evil look at him. "This is not your concern…"

"Since you're talking about the world where I live in and with the head of the examiners just after I finish my NEWTs, I have a bad feeling that yes, this does concern me."

"We are trying to discuss some ideas for the betterment of our society, Mr. Potter, and you're still too young to understand…" Umbridge tried to cut him off.

"I'm not a child anymore. I can certainly say that I had a very short childhood. And since I spent the last year planning and making certain to destroy the threat of the Death Eaters and since I personally destroyed Voldemort, while most of the witches and wizards were hiding under their beds, I can assure you, I'm not too young for anything!" Harry answered forcefully.

"Quite right, Mr. Potter!" Griselda Marchbanks said. "Since your ideas, madam," she turned to Umbridge with a sarcastic tone, "interfere directly in Mr. Potter's live, and the lives of other young people, I believe that they have more than enough reason to make their opinions heard."

Dolores Umbridge couldn't control the distaste that showed in her face. "I don't think the middle of the corridor of the Ministry is the place to discuss this…"

"Then bring it to the Wizengamot," Marchbanks responded. "Instead of trying to ambush me and do this behind everybody's back! But make no mistake madam," the sarcasm was back, "I, for one, will fight you every step of the way!"

This time the evil eye was directed to the older woman. "Maybe you can _learn_ to appreciate the good intentions behind my purpose, madam," Umbridge said and turned away.

"I never encounter one single drop of good intentions in that witch," Griselda Marchbanks whispered just loud enough for Harry, Ron and Hermione to hear.

"What was all that about?" Ron asked.

"That… woman ambushed me after the NEWTs and tried to press a new '_Educational Degree'!"_ Marchbandks was really peeved.

"What this one was supposed to be?" Hermione asked.

"She wanted to test the magical potential of all NEWTs students and then indicate what careers they could follow."

"What? She's going to be the one to choose our job?" Ron asked aghast.

"Well, that what she's planning! But I told her! This time I won't just quit the Wizegamont, I'll pull a racket there to stop this nonsense!" Marchbanks was getting red in the face and her voice was rising in indignation.

"That's even possible?" Harry asked. "To test the magical potential of someone?"

"Well, there's a theory really. We never did it. It's a bit like divination. People are different and react differently, so the test was never considered much accurate. I don't even know why she's trying to bring this back on."

"Oh, but I know," Harry squinted his eyes in two thin and menacing green lines. "I have a pretty good idea why that witch went after some bogus idea like that. And this time I won't just sit quietly waiting for her to put her plans in action," he finished, turned around and started walking back to the entrance hall of the Ministry.

"Mr. Potter…" Griselda Marchbanks tried to call him back.

"I'm sorry, Madam, he's a bit peeved right now. I believe we will be in contact about the results of ours NEWTs," Hermione said and quickly run after his friend.

"Ah, sorry," Ron apologized while starting to go after his girlfriend and Harry. "More savings to do, I think!"

And the three youngsters' ran out of the corridor, leaving a surprised witch behind.

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"Harry, maybe we could think a bit more about it…" Hermione was trying to talk to his friend.

The trio was sited at the living room at the Burrow, apparently immerse in some kind of planning and discussion when Arthur Weasley walked out of the fireplace. He had expected to meet his youngest son and his friends at the Ministry Atrium and them come back home, but when he arrived at the meeting point the security guard informed him that the teens had already left, after some kind of altercation between them and Griselda Marchbanks and Dolores Umbridge. Arthur hurried home, worried about what all that meant. Umbrige was still the Undersecretary of the Minister and the witch really liked to wave her office around. If she was trying to mess with the Head of the Examinations Department, then the NEWTs results of the independent students, and even the Hogwarts' students, were in jeopardy. Arthur walked slowly toward the teens, trying to find out what was going on.

"I know we were awfully lucky with all the Voldemort business Hermione, but that doesn't mean I'll let that toad do the damage that the Death Eaters' couldn't!" Harry was really angry.

"I know! And I agree!" Hermione tried again. "I'm just saying that we might want to think carefully about it."

"This time I'll strike as soon as I can. I'll not wait and see what else she wants. I'll do whatever I can to curb this right here and right now."

Ron was following the discussion a lot like a Muggle would follow a tennis game, looking from one to the other, not quite knowing what might happen next.

"But if you're too hasty about it, it might hurt you even more," Hermione said.

"Well, right now, the only thing hurting me is that woman in a place where she can harm me," Harry answered.

"Children," Arthur Weasley tried but was taken aback by the fierce glances he received from the three young people. "Harry, Hermione," Arthur tried again. "Maybe I can help. I work at the Ministry; I know how things work in there. If you tell me what got you so worried…"

Hermione immediately calmed down and approached the older man. "Mr. Weasley, we found out that Umbridge is trying to bring back the test of magical potential together with the NEWTs."

"What?!" Arthur was beyond surprised.

"She wants to do what the Death Moochers couldn't!" Harry exclaimed. "She wants to control and push us to dead end jobs where we would be under her heel! I didn't spend the last year running around after Voldy's pieces just to roll over and play dead for that toad!"

"Harry, calm down," Hermione tried again.

"No," everyone was surprised with Ron's interruption. "I think Harry's right. We can't deal with it gently; we have to steamroll over that toad."

"Ron, don't use…" But the comment Mr. Weasley was about to do was interrupted by Harry.

"No, Mr. Weasley! She's a toad and a lot more! And she doesn't deserve any kind of respect! Not even for her age!"

"Yeah, dad, she was a real…" Ron controlled his choice of word. "Pain in Hogwarts and now she's trying again. If she wins this, she'll know about our magical potential and will choose where put us for the rest of our lives. I don't want to sit behind a desk in the Ministry for the next hundred years… No offence, dad."

"None taken, son. Each person is cut out for a different job. And work in something you really hate is not going to help anyone."

"Think about it, Hermione," Harry turned back to his friend. "What if she decides that you have to work at the… I don't know… The Department of Magical Games and Sports! Instead of the research area you want so much!"

"She wouldn't!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Of course she would, Hermione!" Ron said. It was a bit weird to be the logical one in a discussion with Hermione. "She would do anything to down-grade Muggleborns in general and Harry's friends specially. And she would make you read and follow all the stupid rules she was able to come up with, I'll bet!"

Hermione sat down with a lost look in her face.

"You're thinking that she would do that for the right reasons, Hermione?" Harry asked with a sneer. "She's doing it out of spite because we won and took away her excuse as following Voldemort's preachers. She's doing that to push us away, not to help improve the Wizarding world."

"I… I know…" Hermione said in a low voice. "I… I just thought… Maybe her intention is bad but the idea could be used…"

"No, Hermione," Harry stated. "Any kind of interference and control of the individual life can be abused too easily. It's much better to put the departments and professionals to make speeches to the Hogwarts' students to try and draw people for these jobs than just push them into whatever place they need them."

Harry turned his back to the people in the room and spoke really quietly but they heard him easily enough. "It was just what Dumbledore did to me. He didn't ask for my help or explain what he needed. He just pushed me into a position where I had to do what he wanted or die trying. Or worse, live with the remorse of failing."

"Oh, Harry," Hermione sobbed and hugged her friend.

The silence filled the room. But it didn't last long because the sound of the floo brought attention to the arrival of the twins.

"Good night…"

"fellow Weasleys!"

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"Why won't you tell us your plan, Harry?" Hermione whined.

"So you may be surprised as everyone else, Hermione. Then nobody would be able to say you planned this," Harry answered calmly.

They had just arrived at Diagon Alley. Harry had pushed them through the Burrow's door soon after they finished breakfast. The only thing he would say is that they had things to do at the shopping street.

Ron was happy in just come along, trusting his friend would be able to do what was necessary to take care of the evil toad's plans.

Hermione, on the other hand, didn't deal well with being out of the loop of anything and was quite anxious about Harry's plans, since he wouldn't tell them anything. She knew something needed to be done but didn't really trust her friend to be cool headed about it.

Harry was walking with a carefree air around himself. He had his hands in his trousers' pockets and he was almost whistling. Anyone who was careful enough to pay attention to his face would see a determinate and almost giddy shine in his eyes. The Marauder's heir had finally come out to play.

When the trio was close to the bookstore, things seemed to fall in place even better than Harry had planned. Hermione, Ron and Harry were blocking the entrance of the shop when Rita Skeeter practically jumped Harry, asking questions with her electric green quill floating by her side. From the other side came Pansy Parkinson and Daphne Greengrass, talking quietly and trying not to call attention to themselves. But the said group formed at the shop entrance, the two Slytherin girls had to stop and listen.

"Harry, come on, give a little something to this old friend here," Rita asked in her better seductive voice, which make Harry a bit sick to his stomach.

"I already answered your questions at the ceremony, Rita, what else you want?" Harry answered, feigning a bored tone and look.

Hermione was ready to intervene when Ron just grasped her hand and hold tight.

"Any new ideas on how things should be done from now on? Maybe some advice for the Minister?" Skeeter's bug eyes shined with malice.

Harry could only thank any gods listening right now for the perfect opening for him.

"It seems that the Minister isn't very keen on listening to any advice I might give, Rita," he said, trying his best to look disappointed. "After all, he's keeping the Death Eaters' sympathizers close to him at the government, which should be proof enough of that."

"And who they might be?" The woman was almost skipping in excitement.

"You can start with our ex-Defense teacher. After all, she did use a dark object to torture students while in Hogwarts. If she can be so callous with children, one must wander of what else she's capable of."

"You're talking about Undersecretary Dolores Umbridge?" Rita exclaimed.

At that point Pansy and Daphne tried to turn around and get out of the scene but a small crowd had formed around the group, happy to see the hero of the Wizarding world up close and eager to hear what he might say. The Slytherin girls were trapped close to the trio and the excited reporter with no means to escape.

"She's the only Ministry employee that worked as a teacher in Hogwarts, as far as I know," Harry answered.

"And what dark object she used to torture you, poor students?" Rita asked with a hungry look upon her face.

"A blood quill," Harry's answer brought a collective gasp from the people around them. Rita almost jumped in excitement with the juice gossip that opened up so many opportunities for her incendiary articles.

"And what did she do with it?"

"She assigned detention to anyone who disagreed with her closed vision of the Wizarding world and we had to write lines with that damned quill."

"We?!" Rita saw an even better opportunity here. "You also had to use the blood quill?"

"In a matter of fact," Hermione interrupted, understanding Harry's plan now. "Harry was the first one that had detention with Ms. Umbridge, when he insisted about Voldemort's return. And he was also the one with most detentions. I think it amount to a few weeks worth in the end."

Even with the typical time lapse for the gasping around Voldemort's name, the comment produced the intended impact.

"Harry still have the scar in his hand," Ron helped.

Rita immediately grabbed Harry's right hand and examined the 'I must not tell lies' scar.

"That is awful," the reporter said but her tone implied exactly the opposite.

"And now she wants to do even more, she wants to re-introduce an old ritual that gives the Ministry a recorded register of the potential magical core of any student." Harry pulled his hand out from the woman's grasp and plunged ahead with his plan.

"What?" Rita was so lost in her thoughts about how and what she would write on the blood quill situation that she lost Harry's last information. But the crowd around him was entranced in his words and it was already agitated with his news.

"Umbridge is trying to re-instate the test of magical core so the Ministry can decide the best job for any wizard and witch," Harry continued. To wrap up his plan, he turned toward Pansy Parkinson and Daphne Greengrass and brought the Slytherin girls into the conversation.

"What you would think, Greengrass, if after this test Umbridge informs you that you will have to be the new Potions teacher at Hogwarts? After all, your family is all into potions and its ingredients, right?"

"I don't see what this have to do with anything," Daphne tried to escape.

"But if Umbriedge start this test again, everybody would be tested and push into whatever job she thought was best. And, if I remember correctly, you weren't that fond of Potions at the school." Harry turned completely toward the girls but kept an eye at Rita and how much attention she was paying to the conversation. And it was enough to guarantee that the story would appear at the Daily Prophet as he had planned.

"We would never submit to this, Potter," Pansy intervened and ignored her friend trying to shut her up. "The old families don't need, or accept, this kind of interference from the Ministry. Only Mud… new additions need this kind of directions."

At least Parkinson got herself before using the offensive term. But everyone around them knew what she intend to use. Ron's ears started to get red and Hermione had to grip tighter at her boyfriend's hand so he wouldn't retaliate. Harry's only show of displease was the narrowed of his eyes.

"As I thought, it's just another Death Eater plot. What will happen when people like Hermione test higher than half the purebloods?"

"And who cares? They would never go anywhere" Pansy exclaimed and the same time that Daphne held her hand and said: "Pansy!"

Harry stared hard at the brunette until she lowered her head and fidget. He looked around, facing the crowd and said in a clear voice: "I care. And Hermione will go as far as she wants in her career because bigots like you will never be able to stop her.I didn't destroy one dark lord to just let a stupid government toad keep doing his dirty job. Let's see who else I can find that 'cares' about hidden Death Eaters trying to run the Ministry."

And then Harry forced his way through the crowd with Ron and Hermione hot on his heels. The trio went toward the Leaky Cauldron while Rita Skeeter ran to her newspaper to write the first of a series of articles that her vicious mind had already half written. Pansy and Daphne turned around and fled the place because of the angry looks they were getting and the gossip started at the Alley with Harry's words repeated and commented all around.

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Ron and Hermione followed Harry through the pub and toward the fireplace and jumped right after him, repeating the address: "Longbottom's Manor".

The couple exited the floo to find Harry already in deep conversation with Neville, while Susan Bones and Luna Lovegood watched with amused smiles.

"Hello Hermione, Ron," Susan said. "What's going on?"

"Harry jumped off the floo like a horde of Snugling Snurfs were following him," Luna stated.

Hermione didn't even blink before the Ravenclaw's words. She was learning to not get peeved by Luna's comments anymore.

"We found out yesterday that Umbridge is trying to instate a new regulation that gives the Ministry the power to choose our jobs for us," Hermione informed.

"What?" Susan's screamed surprised.

Luna just nodded sadly. "It's the Furlings all over again. That's why they went to another world. To escape the Ministry's mating regulations."

Neville and Harry approached the group and they started to plan how to spread the correct information around, before Rita Skeeter could create too much confusion with her most probably dubious article.

Harry wanted the information published and discussed so Umbridge and the Minister would have to deal with a lot of upset people (and if Rita did her job right, a lot of angry howlers).

But Harry also needed the correct information getting to the right ears, so the correct powerful group of people could go up against this new attempt in bigotry.

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TBC…


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: English is my second language, so I'm doing the best I can with the checking of the word processor. This chapter wasn't beta.

* * *

**CHAPTER TWELVE**

Scrimgeour was not a happy man. First his perfectly cooked breakfast was wasted when he lost all his appetite with the arrival of '_The Daily Prophet'_. The headline and the first article had soured his mood completely.

_**MINISTRY'S**_ _**UNDERSECRETARY TORTURED BOY-WHO-LIVED**_

_By Rita Skeeter_

_In another bold and surprising statement, Harry Potter, Boy-Who-Lived, Chosen One, The-One-Who-Conquered, Hero of the Wizarding World, declared himself disappointed with the Ministry of Magic. Upon this reporter insistence, Mr. Potter talked about the year Undersecretary Dolores Umbridge taught Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts School, still under the Fudge administration._

_It seems that Madame Umbridge chose to reinforce the Ministry policies through a dark object – namely a Blood Quill – which she used to torture students under her care._

_The bold and courageous attitude of Mr. Potter in trying to inform the Wizarding World of the return of You-Know-Who gained him weeks worth of detentions using the Dark Quill._

_Miss Emma Granger, an intimate friend of The-Boy-Who-Lived, pointed out that he still carries the scar from his tortures and this reporter could personally verify the evil inscription of "I must not tell lies" imbibed on the back of Mr. Potter's right hand._

Scrimgeour stopped reading there since Skeeter started with her diabrites against the government. But the worse was that there were various corroborative testimonies that put his Undersecretary in a very bad light.

He couldn't even sit down at his desk after arriving in his office before his Personal Assistant came in to warn him about the dozens of Howlers arriving and that an Auror from the DMLE would like a word about the news.

Even with a powerful _Protego_ on, the Minister and his Assistant could still hear the mumble of the Howlers.

Then Chief Auror Shackelbolt entered his office to talk about the many angry and unhappy parents wishing to complain about Dolores Umbridge.

All the fuss almost made him wish that Voldemort was still alive so people would be too afraid to be out and about complaining to him. Almost.

And finally something happened that made him really wish for another Dark Lord to fight: Augusta Longbottom invaded his office with a terrified and nervous Percy Weasley following close behind.

"And what you think you're doing, Rufus? How dare you try to invade a wizard and witch privacy like that? Don't believe for a second that I, and others, won't fight you on this!"

"What?" Scrimgeour was completely lost.

"Sir, it was about this issue that the Undersecretary Umbridge wished to see you yesterday," Percy whispered.

Scrimgeour cringed inside. That couldn't be good.

"Re-instate the magical core test?! Didn't it cause enough troubles a century ago? And your Undersecretary hadn't caused enough problems already with her perchance for dark objects?" Augusta Longbottom said in her most strict tone while throwing a newspaper over the Minister's desk.

He saw the magazine title, '_The Quibbler',_ and the headline:

_**HARRY POTTER READY TO DEFEND THE WIZARDING WORLD AGAINST THE MINISTRY DICTATORSHIP.**_

Scrimgeour groaned and let his head hit the desk. This was his worst morning ever!

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Dolores Umbridge was almost skipping when she left the floo into the Ministry Atrium. She was ready to present her new Educational Decree to the Minister and even more eager to access the NEWTs results so she could redistribute the students as she saw fit. The Centaurs Liaison Office should have a new employee as soon as she was able to put her hands on a Miss Granger's file.

'_But what to do with The-Boy-Who-Annoyed?'_ Umbridge was thinking when her walk was interrupted by a couple of Aurors stopping in front of her.

Dolores had to look up, way up, to face Kingsley Shackelbolt and she was not happy about it. He might be a good Auror but, like so many others, he failed to see the bigger picture.

"Auror Shackelbolt…" But she was interrupted before being able to start put up any air.

"Madame Umbridge, you need to accompany us to the DMLE office."

"What happened now?" She asked annoyed. Dolores had too much to do to go around fixing other people's mistakes.

"There are a series of accusations that we must investigate. We need interrogate you, Madame."

"What?! What preposterous thing this is?" Her indignant speech was cut short by the swarm of reporters that run through the Atrium to surround them with a glee Rita Skeeter up in front with her electric green quill bouncing by her side.

"Ex-Minister Fudge gave you the order to use the Blood Quill at the students in Hogwarts?" Skeeter threw the question while still approaching Umbridge and the Aurors.

"The order was against all students or just The-Boy-Who-Lived?" Another young woman shot her question.

"The tentative of re-instatement of the magical core test is a sanctioned retaliation against Mr. Potter and his friends?" This time it was a young man who asked the question.

"Ah… No… What? Cornelius didn't know… You don't have the right…" Dolores Umbridge felt lost, turning to one to the other, torn between trying to run and asking for the Aurors' protection.

"Madame Umbridge can't answer you questions at this time," Shackelbolt interrupted.

Umbridge could even start to like the man if he hadn't completed with: "She's expected at the DMLE for interrogation."

"The DMLE is investigating and is expecting to make arrests?" The young man asked again.

"What I can say is that the DMLE is taking all the accusations seriously and will look into them. All the appropriate actions will be taken. Excuse us. This way, Madame," and Shackelbolt took hold of Umbridge arm and direct her toward the elevator, follow by the other Auror.

The group of reporters milled around a bit but when Percy Weasley was seen coming from the Apparition point, they all run after him, trying to get a quote or even an interview.

As soon as Percy saw the reporters coming after him he started to run, trying to escape. But it was no use since all of them got caught inside one of the elevators and Percy had to try and fend off all the questions and even photos while descending toward the Minister's office floor.

The elevator's door was barely open when Percy ran out of it and all the way to the office, being finally able to close the room's door at the face of the reporters.

Rufus Scrimgeour left his room to find out what all the fuss was about to see his Personal Assistant resting against the office door, panting with a scared look in his face.

"What's the meaning of this?"

"Sir… reporters… Umbridge…" It was all what Weasley was able to stutter between breaths.

"For Merlin's sake!" Scrimgeour exclaimed but he was interrupted by the knocks on the door and the high voices asking questions from the other side.

"Put a Silence spell on the door, Weasley!" Scrimgeour commanded. "And let's try to do something to get us out of this mess!"

Percy cast the spell and both man sat on their desks and tried to concentrate but the some thought was on both of their heads: 'There was anything they could do to salvage the situation?'

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After the release of the day's edition of The Daily Prophet and The Quibbler, the sitting room of the Burrow became the focal point of the British Wizarding World.

Reporters came calling via floo, or sending owls, asking for interviews and not only by Harry Potter. They want to know about Umbridge's tenure as DADA teacher at Hogwarts as much as anything else anyone could say about Ministry personnel.

While all the confusion took over the Wizarding world in general and the Burrow living room specially, Harry Potter, possible the very one responsible for all the commotion, was happily flying around over the backyard of the Weasley home. Ron and Ginny were also on brooms, training for their Quidditch positions as Keeper and Chaser a bit lukewarmly. Both of them wanted to talk to Harry about different things but the black-haired boy keep evading any attempt of a serious conversation.

But Harry's calm morning flight came to an end when Hermione left the house and started to shout for him with her hands on her hips:

"Harry! Come on, come down! I finished the research you asked! Haarriieee!"

The young man smiled and turned the front of his broom down, approaching the sole in a quick dive. Hermione squeaked and jumped back while Harry maneuvered his broom with absolute control to land near his friend.

"Calm down, Hermione. I'm here. So, you had any luck?"

"You shouldn't do this kind of stunt, Harry! One day you will hurt yourself!"

"Come on, Hermione. I know what I'm doing. And if I do hurt myself someday, that's because I shouldn't be flying anymore. Say, how's the research?" Harry dismissed his friend's fears and asked eagerly for the results of his plan.

Hermione huffed, squeezed her hands and did a half turn, as if she would go back inside without answering Harry. But she never could really control her need to impart the knowledge she acquired through any research.

"Yes! There are plenty of options, some quite nasty, in a matter of fact. We should choose carefully. But even the worst ones would never survive long under a Wizengamot discussion."

"Good! We don't need much, just something to scare the Ministry people some. Let them jump all over Umbridge for us," Harry smiled a bit evilly.

Ron and Ginny finally caught up with them just in time to hear Harry's last statement.

"Will you finally tell us what this all about?" Ron asked a bit peeved to be left out of all the mischief.

"If Madam Longbottom arrived, I can tell everybody about my idea," Harry answered and started to walk toward the house with his Firebolt held over one shoulder.

"By Merlin! This boy is getting too much like Dumbledore!" Ginny exclaimed and stalked after Harry.

Ron and Hermione exchange a long look and just walked back to the Burrow holding hands.

"Will _**you**_ tell me what's going on?" Ron asked in a whisper.

"I really don't know, Ron. Harry asked me to research some old laws, decrees and practices of the Wizarding world that have been abandoned or banned by the Ministry. But he didn't tell me what he wants with the information."

"Ginny is right. He's becoming too much like Dumbledore with his obscure tips and information in parts."

"If he steps too far, you can punch him and I'll wear him down with a lecture," Hermione said half-joking, kissing his boyfriend lightly in the lips.

Ron smiled and agreed, shaking his head.

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When the group was all in the living room of the Burrow, Harry asked Hermione:

"Please, put up some Secrecy and Protective wards and don't forget the anti-Animagus one."

"Anti-Animagus, Harry?" Ron asked puzzled.

"We don't want anyone _**bugging**_ in into this conversation, Ron," Hermione answered while casting.

"Oh…"

"What?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"We will explain, Mrs. Weasley," Harry said, sitting down, waiting for Hermione to finish.

"Ready, Harry," Hermione informed, going to seat next to her boyfriend.

"Right," Harry coughed to clear his throat. He looked around the group. He was encircled by all the Weasleys, excepted, as always, Percy, plus Amos Diggory and Remus Lupin for the Order of the Phoenix. None Hogwarts teacher or Aurors were present. Mrs. Longbottom, Neville, Susan Bones, Luna and her father had just arrived to complete the group. The young man gulped but forged ahead with his Gryffindor courage.

"I asked you all to be here to explain about the news and my idea to how to fight against the closed Death Eaters at the Ministry."

"I thought all of them were caught," Mrs. Weasley said preoccupied.

"Well, all the marked ones we could find, Mrs. Weasley, but there are those we don't know about, but, more worrisome, those who believe in Voldemort's creeds but were never marked," Harry answered.

"And I would put Umbridge on the top of that list," Hermione said.

"I don't want people to think about the news on the _Prophet_ and the _Quibbler_ as a way for me to get revenge," Harry continued.

"Not that you're not entailed to it," Remus murmured.

"Yeah," Harry blushed. "But it's not what I want. I really want to help change things. What's the use for us to go to all the trouble to destroy Voldemort when people like Umbridge are around to help create another one?"

"So, what's the plan, mate?" Ron asked, tired of the political talk after almost everybody had the time to cringe after the dark wizard's name.

"Let's make them see who's making the real trouble for the Wizarding world," Hermione answered.

"How?" Came the question from the middle of the group.

"We will present an idea of our own to resurrect some law or ritual of old that the Ministry doesn't want to see in play," Harry said. "When they bulk, we can try to negotiate, all the time reporting what they are trying to hide."

"Don't seem too complicate," Bill commented.

"So, why has it been done before," Fred asked.

"If could do so much good?" George completed.

"Because it wasn't of the interest of those capable of pulling this off," Harry answered.

"Or maybe there was other things they thought more important, Harry," Hermione said in a warning tone.

"I'm not downplaying what they had done, Hermione. I'm just saying they really didn't want to change anything. Change can be hard and painful, so people mostly try to stay the same, correct a thing here or there."

"What's in the past can't be undone, so let's focus in the present and the future," Remus stated.

"What else you want of me, Mr. Potter?" Mrs. Longbottom asked.

"Thanks for shaking up the Minister, Madam," Harry said. "And I think you would be a good person to present our _'returning law'_".

"Which is…?" Arthur Weasley asked a bit suspicious.

"The need to do a yearly checks of Ministry employees through Veritaserum before Aurors and at least three members of the Wizengamot," Harry stated.

"Huh?"

"What?"

"From where you find that?!" Came the disconcerted questions.

"Our super known-it-all Hermione…"

"Harry!"

"You're a superhero, Hermione! Accept it!" Harry joked. "But she did a good research and listed most of the laws, decrees and rituals we could try to present again. Some don't interest anybody; others would be too much into Umbridge league, so we pick something that could do some real good but that the Minister or a lot of the Ministry's employees don't want to see working."

"Veritaserum, Harry? A bit extreme, don't you think?" Mr. Weasley asked weakly.

"Not really, sir. We did write a very complete propose with boundaries for its use and the kind of questions that could be asked, if, by any freak accident, we get it passed and approved. But I don't think Scrimgeour will let it go this far. He will get rid of Umbridge first. My idea it to try and fight any other stupid bigot ideas the same, for as long as we can, or, at least, we make real head way in the Ministry," Harry finished.

The silence filled the room and people started to look at each other and murmur about all they had heard. Harry just sat back and watched.

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Harry entered Courtroom 10 where the Wizengamot would convey and felt a shiver run through his spine. It was the same room where he was judged in the summer prior of his fifth year at Hogwarts.

'Maybe it's fitting that we should fight the Ministry here, again," Harry thought while following dutifully after Mrs. Longbottom.

They sat at one side of the stands and could see Scrimgeour and Percy Weasley at the other side, deep in conversation. Harry quickly found Dolores Umbridge in the middle of the Wizengamot members and Amos Diggory just a few seats away. The soft murmur of conversation continued until the Minister thump the judge's hammer, asking for silence.

"We are here to revise new laws and decrees presented to the Ministry of Magic for approval or banishment, in accordance with the British Wizarding world bylaws," Percy stated pompously, as always. "As for the first order of business…"

But the young Assistance was interrupted by the shrill voice of Dolores Umbridge asking in a fake whispered shout: "What _**he**_ is doing here?!" And the witch extended her arm to point toward Harry.

The rest of the room turned to look at what the witch was pointing at and it was possible to hear the suffering sighs coming from Percy Weasley and Rufus Scrimgeour.

"Mr. Potter," Percy tried to make his voice sound with authority. "What you think you're doing in the middle of a Wizengamot's proceedings?"

"Watching and learning, Perce," Harry answered calmly and with a smile.

"This is not a classroom, Potter!" Umbridge screamed.

"You should know, Umbridge, nobody would just submit to be tortured with a Blood Quill here," Harry said sarcastic.

"Mr. Potter! You should respect all the members of the Wizengamot!" Percy complained. "And you do not have the right to be here!"

"Wrong, again, Perce," Harry kept smiling, seeing how much it unnerved the others. "As Head of two Ancient and Noble families, I have all the right to watch any Wizengamot proceedings and present my opinions, suggestions or claims."

"How did it you find that out?" Scrimgeour let escape with a sour face at the same time that whispers run through the Wizengamot members: "Head of two families?!"

"Madame Longbottom here was kind enough to offer to tutor me on the duties and rights of a Head of House," Harry had an evil grin on his face. "She believes that to maintain the _**important**_ traditions of the Wizarding world you should teach the youngsters about it, not hide those so old coots could just manipulate away to their hearts content."

"Mr. Potter," Scrimgeour tried again to keep in control. "There's a reason why young men, like you, are not invited to the Wizengamot meetings. And you seem to be demonstrating it quite well."

"Like I said, if you're a not taught and showed how to do it, what will happen when you need to do it? But I shouldn't be surprise with your view, Minister, considering the type of people you surround yourself with."

"Potter!" Umbridge stood up and shouted but she was quickly pulled back to her seat and another member of the Wizengamot stood up to ask a question.

"How come you're Head of two families, Potter?"

"And how can I teach this young man anything when the people who should serve as example behave so poorly?" Mrs. Longbottom asked aghast. "Address the young man correctly, Benchwear! Mr. Potter is Head of his family and heir of the Blacks."

"Blacks?!" Again the whispers ran through the room.

"But there are no more Blacks…" A voice sounded in the middle of the group.

"That's why I'm now the heir," Harry answered as if talking to a child.

"How can you be Black's heir, Potter?!" Benchwear was not bending over the old woman or this young intruder.

"The last scion of the Blacks was my godfather and made me his presumed heir. When he died without children, he left me everything. Someday my second son will be able to claim the Head of the Black family," Harry answered seriously. "My first born will be Head of the Potter family."

"But the last scion of the Blacks was a convicted murderer, Sirius Black!" Another voice shouted out.

"Wrong!" Harry stood up aggrieved with the entire discussion and situation. "My godfather, Sirius Black, was imprisoned without a trial or even a hearing. He was never accused or condemned! But not even this miscarriage of justice from the Wizengamot would interfere with the will of a Head of House. Your own laws guarantee it."

"What!?"

"Never judged?!"

"What was Bagnold and Fudge playing at?"

"Scrimgeour! You were at the DMLE at the time! Didn't you know about it?"

"Can you prove it, son?"

"Oh my, another Pureblood family lost…"

"What if there are others in Azkaban?!"

The cacophony of exclamations and questions filled the room and Scrimgeour saw himself hounded by the others wizards and witches shouting angry and nervous questions.

Percy gripped nervously to the proclamations of the meeting, not knowing what to do.

Dolores Umbridge tried to leave her seating but the confusion was too much to permit her to move through the muddle.

By the sidelines, Kingsley Shackelbolt, Tonks and Auror Towler watched the proceedings while fighting the urge to laugh. They tried to keep Umbridge under arrest but as a Wizengamot member they needed more than just the testimonies of students. But if whatever Harry was doing worked, the witch might be kicked of the Wizarding tribunal and then she would be at their hands. Without the protection of the administrative board, she could be taken in custody. But all the confusion installed now was quite a fun show to watch, so the Aurors were just enjoying their time.

"That's enough!" Scrimgeour finally shout while shooting red stars from his wand, making the crowd around him to disperse rather quickly.

"We are not here to discuss past mistakes from older administrations! We have our plans to follow and discuss! If anyone wants to discuss anything different, then make a claim and wait for the next Wizengamot meeting!" Rufus rearranged his robes, took a deep breath and turned to Percy.

"Mr. Weasley, please continue with the proclamations!" Then he sat down.

Took at least five more minutes for the rest of the Wizengamot members to calm down and go back to their seats but finally the meeting were under order and ready to proceed. Scrimgeour and Percy had arranged the order of the proclamations to show the easy issues first. They thought that issues that would be easily approved or reject would open the way for more controversial subjects. That's way the first order of business was the last Educational Decree created by Dolores Umbridge. Scrimgeour believed it would be rejected quite quickly, opening some space to discuss _**his**_ idea of control over young people just out of Hogwarts.

"As for the first order of business," Percy started again. "Educational Decree number 30 which pertained the evaluation of NEWTs results and the better placements of young students to help the betterment of the Wizarding world."

Scrimgeour and Umbridge kept their eyes on Potter during Percy's reading, just expecting the young man to jump up and interrupt or complain about the decree. When the reading was finished and Potter didn't move, Scrimgeour started to frown, worried about what the young man might be planning, while Umbridge started to smile her evil smirk, believing the boy wouldn't be able to stop her.

The murmurs between the Wizengamot members started right way but soon enough someone stood up to comment the decree out loud.

"I think that with correct directions, this could be a good idea."

Everybody turned to the man who had spoken.

"What you mean, Mr. Greengrass," Scrimgeour asked.

"Well, the Pureblood families," he hesitated a moment and rephrased. "The old families have traditions and the members usually follow the same professions for generations. But the… newcomers in our world, the… Muggleborn doesn't usually know what they will do after Hogwarts. If the Ministry could direct them, they can be of use, especially in jobs that are hard to fill in."

"Exactly my idea!" Umbridge exclaimed.

"I don't know…" Amos Diggory said with a pensive expression. "My son was never interested in work for the Ministry, especially for the Department of Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. He dreamed about playing professional Quidditch."

"This is hardly relevant now, isn't it," Umbridge intervened with disgust. "He is dead, after all."

Diggory' expression closed, with his eyes pressed almost closed and his mouth disappearing in a thin line. Most of the Wizengamot held their breaths before the uncalled and callous statement and Scrimgeour even groaned.

"Madame Umbridge," another Wizengamot member said with an uncomfortable tone in his voice. "I don't think this comment was appropriate."

"Let's stop walking on eggs here," Umbridge dismissed the rebuke. "We have a society to put on the correct tracks and what happen yesterday should not influence us!"

The silence in the courtroom was getting heavy. Harry was working hard to keep his temper quiet and his mouth shout and Mrs. Longbottom was shifting in her seat, quite disturbed by the other witch's words.

"Well…" Percy tried to bring the room to order, even if he was feeling quite uncomfortable with the conversation. "Maybe if we could proceed to vote…"

"Just a moment," Amos Diggory stood up.

Umbridge made a face in disgust because of the interruption and Greengrass decided to sit since he thought he had done enough. As a good Slytherin he didn't want to expose himself more than necessary.

"In conjunction with the Educational Decree number 30 I think we should institute means to re-evaluate and control those employed," Diggory completed his comment.

Surprised faces filled the room. Nobody thought Diggory would agree and even less help Dolores Umbridge's plans.

"That sounds good," Scrimgeour said. But he was also wondering what was going on. He never thought Potter would permit something like that to pass or even people who worked close to him would condone to Umbridge's ideas. Rufus could smell a trap somewhere in the way; he just didn't figure it out yet.

"Since the Educational Decree number 30, as the descriptions distribute to us states, will allow the access to NEWTs results and the direct evaluation of wizards and witches," Amos continued. "I think is just appropriate that a safeguard be built in it. Let's say, interview under _Veritaserum_ in the presence of Aurors and Wizengamot members to all those involved in these proceedings."

"What?!" Scrimgeour exclaimed.

"That's…"

"The idea…"

"_Veritaserum_…"

"Why…"

The surprised, incredulous and unhappy cries were heard all over the room. Some members of the Wizengamot even stood up to protest and discuss between themselves. Harry and Mrs. Longbottom kept in their places but a disturbing smile was gracing their faces now.

"I think it's a wonderful idea!" Umbridge exclaimed, grinning madly with all the opportunities that interviews of Potter and his cohorts under a truth serum would open up for her.

"You must be joking," Percy exclaimed!

"Why ever would I?" Diggory answered. "Any test to check for the magical core of a witch or wizard is invasion enough. I don't see how an interview would be more so."

"That's right!" Umbridge was getting quite enthusiastic to the idea. "We could be certain that no one had dark tendencies or had committed any crime that went undetected."

"Sir, how that would safeguard Madame Umbridge's project?" Percy asked still surprised. He was quite adamant to follow the Ministry's directives but he didn't have anything against Muggleborn. He thought that Umbridge's project was just a way to try and control anyone who didn't agree with her and the new suggestion just seems to give the witch even more power.

"Don't you see, Weasley," Umbridge boot up again. "It will give us the opportunity to check for the loyalty of all working at the Ministry!"

"I was thinking more on the lines of how all involved in the process would have the best intentions and interests regarding the Wizarding world," Amos Diggory corrected the witch.

"Whatever…" Dolores Umbridge was too busy thinking of all she would like to ask from Harry-Bloody-Potter under _Veritaserum_.

"Wait," Scrimgeour couldn't shake the impression that something in the other wizard's phrase was the trap he was thinking about early. "You said 'all involved in the process'?"

"Of course," Diggory answered calmly.

"What you mean exactly?" Scrimgeour insisted.

"That before being able to interview anyone under _Veritaserum_ this wizard, or witch, should submit himself, or herself, to the same procedure. As it happens inside the DMLE, of course."

"Huh?" Was the most common question that filled the courtroom.

"If I may?" Shackelbolt advanced to the front of the Wizengamot.

Scrimgeour was still trying to understand where this maneuver would take them, so he gestured so the Chief Auror could address the Wizengamot.

"After an Auror finishes his training, he needs to stay on duty for a year before he might be allowed to participate in interview or interrogations. And before he can even start to be present in one of this he has to undergo an interview himself, under Veritaserum, to guarantee his loyalties toward the Ministry of Magic. These interviews used to happen at least once a year but that procedure was slowly discontinued and we haven't done it in over two years. I would mind to go back to this procedure."

"Ah," a member of the Wizengamot raised his hand, like a school boy, to ask a question. "This Veritaserum interview used to happen all around the Ministry, didn't it?

"Yes, sir," Shackelbolt answered with a smile. "Ministry Bagnold stopped them during Voldemort's first raising, stating that they couldn't risk Ministry's secrets getting out."

There was a collective gasp because of the dark lord's name and them a scared comprehension downed the Wizengamot.

"Oh, this could be bad…" Everybody was able to hear the comment even if they couldn't pinpoint the one making it.

"But we were talking about interrogating Mudbloods!" Umbridge exclaimed, afraid to where all this was going.

Scrimgeour groaned out loud when he heard his Undersecretary's comment.

Harry sited straight in his chair, his expression forbidding and his hand on his wand.

Everyone around Umbridge took a deliberately step back, trying to put as much distance from the witch as they could.

"What?!" Umbridge asked.

"Madame Umbridge," Percy tried. "This kind of term is not becoming of a Wizengamot member.

Umbridge's face was distorted while she was thinking, trying to remember what she said to cause such discomfort in the room. When it finally downed her, he started to get red, darkening the color to the point it appeared she would ignite in fire.

"I… What I mean…" She spluttered but was quickly interrupted by Amos Diggory.

"We all know what you meant, Madame Umbridge. So, I would like for us to continue I vote the Educational Decree number 30 together with my proposal of Ministry Behavior Procedures as stated in the text I'm distributing now," Diggory tapped his wand over a scroll in his hands and suddenly every Wizengamot member had a copy in front of them.

"We can not approve this!" Umbridge tried after just a glance over the text in front of her.

"I think we should have more time to evaluate this," Benchwear said getting paler while reading the text.

"Let's separate the proposals!" Umbridge tried again.

"It's not possible. They you create the bylaws, Madame Umbridge, makes impossible to go one without clear procedures and it's where my proposal get in." Diggory answered calmly.

"But my other Educational Decrees followed the same structure. I made the procedures after stating them," the witch said.

"And we all know how well that went," a firm voice sounded in the middle of the Wizengamot.

Scrimgeour was running a hand over his face, feeling a very bad headache creeping in. This was suppose to be a simple 'yes' or 'no' vote and should have open the way for his proposals. Now they had a stonewalled meeting and a lot of Wizengamot members afraid. This wouldn't go well at all for all his plans.

"Sir…?" Came the trembling question from Weasley.

"Let's try to discuss this calmly and rationally," Rufus tried.

"What you mean?!" Greengrass stood up with the proposal text in his hands. "This gives the Aurors the right to interrogate even us, from the Wizengamot!"

"What?!"

"No!"

"That's not possible!" Came the different cries all over the room.

"All right! I liked that!" It was possible to hear Shackelbolt comment.

Scrimgeour let his head fell into his hands. This was shaping up to be the worst week of his life._ Ever_.

"Let's go, Mr. Potter," Mrs. Longbottom said standing up. "Nothing else would be accomplished here today. And Amos will inform us of anything of importance."

"Of course," Harry smiled evilly toward Umbridge before following Mrs. Longbottom. "Would you prefer to stop for tea in the Alley, madam, or go home?"

"Let's go to Longbottom mansion, Mr. Potter. Neville and your friends should be there and I think they will love to hear about today's _'lesson'_._"_

"I would say it was quite enlightening, madam." Harry answered, still with the evil smile in his face and he let out a laugh when they passed by the Aurors and Tonks winked at him.

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TBC…

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A/N 2: I must confess that this story ran wild on me and went places I never dreamed for it. So, I'm still trying to think/decide where to go from here. If anyone has any suggestion, please fill free to review or send a PM.


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